Crash Bandicoot 2 Revenge
by Bandi-cute
Summary: Crash, united with his sister Coco, relax in the pleasant heat of the island without a care in the world. That is, until Crash is whisked away into a mad effort to rescue the world...again.
1. Prologue: Preparation and Conspiracy

Crash Bandicoot 1:

**Crash Bandicoot 2:**

**Revenge**

Prologue: Preparation and Conspiracy

It had been one year since Cortex's humiliating defeat at the hands of his failed creation, Crash Bandicoot. Since that time, Cortex had uncovered a power crystal pulsing with natural energy, and he had decided that this would be the main resource to launch his new plot for world domination. Cortex's old colleague, Dr. Nitrous Brio, had managed to reclaim the evolvo-ray, and, as a reimbursement for Cortex's treachery, gained the Cortex Vortex as well. Cortex clasped his arms behind his back, a calculative look spreading across his face.

Brio had been ridiculously timid, but he had not been useless. His inventions were the cornerstone of Cortex's plans, and now, with Brio gone, he needed to start again. Cortex turned to the power crystal, hovering in a gravitational beam of conflicting energy, and smiled as the precious gem glowed with eerie ultraviolet light.

Over the course of the year Cortex had also created a glorious space station. It was far more equipped than his former laboratory had ever been, and it was also safer from the likes of…deranged marsupials. Cortex's smile reversed itself, and he found himself frowning hard at the view-screen. The planet looked peaceful from his current view, and Cortex couldn't help imagining that world would soon be his. Cortex heard a clanking sound behind him, and stiffened slightly.

"Dr. Cortex, I have repeated the calculations, and I regret to inform you that to unleash the full energy of this crystal, you also require the five slave shards from Earth's surface."

Cortex didn't regard his new assistant, and his gaze remained fixed on the vulnerable planet before him. Doctor Nitride Gin was a very accomplished mechanic specializing scientist. He had been one of the great minds of the decade, until his unfortunate accident.

"How do you expect to retrieve the shards Doctor?" N. Gin inquired with a metallic voice. "We do not have any Earth operatives left."

Cortex grit his teeth in irritation, and yet he found that he was smiling. He had already realized this small detail, and had already come to a decision. This resolution would satisfy his plan for world domination, as well as his lust for revenge.

"Do you truly think I am unaware of this situation?" Cortex hissed monotonously. "If we do not have any friends left on the surface, we will need to find…" Cortex's lip curled into an evil grin. "An enemy."


	2. Chapter 1: Rest and Recurrence

Crash Bandicoot 1: Chapter One: Rest and Recurrence

The wind rushed through the trees of N. Sanity Island with the liveliness of a boundless freedom and new hope. The dense jungles had calmed down substantially ever since the contamination, but the plague of Cortex's abominations still left an echoing reek over the islands. Not too far away from the cool breeze of the ocean, two bandicoots laid contently within the warm rays of the sun. Unlike their close related relatives, both were not nocturnal. Yet one would never be able to tell by viewing a normally motionless Crash Bandicoot. All he wished to do ever since his mutation was to lie on a beach and snooze. At first, that hope was dashed by the imprisonment of his friend Tawna, but now he was free to do as he chose. He slept soundly on his back beside Coco, the latter furiously tapping the keys of her laptop.

Crash didn't know if he would ever get used to the constant clicks right beside his ear, but he needn't have worried. The irritation didn't affect his sleeping at all. Snoring with consistently slow breaths, he didn't even move as Coco's machine made a sharp beeping noise.

"Oh no!" Coco wailed, clicking a few more times to cause the noise to stop.

Crash still remained motionless, moaning slightly at the inconsiderate bellow of her exclamation. She brushed a strand of golden hair from out of her eyes, and then turned to her sleeping brother.

"Crash? Crash? Crash!"

The last inquiry was more of a shout, followed by the loud slap of her hands colliding together in front of his nose.

"I'm-awake!" Crash jolted up, his incoherent blabber trailing off. "What? Oh…what do you want?"

If Coco was offended by the rudeness in her brother's tone she didn't mention it. She pointed to her laptop, but Crash was more concerned with blinking the sleep from his eyes.

"Crash, my battery is fried. Please go get an extra battery for me?"

Crash yawned, thumping his head back to the ground.

"Maybe after I finish my nap."

Coco growled. "This 'nap' has lasted for almost nine hours. Come on big brother, this battery won't last very long and you need the exercise."

Crash rolled over and propped his head up on his elbow.

"Dear sister, how many batteries do you think I'm going to find here in the jungle? Unless there's a new species of tree I don't know about?"

With a sigh Coco turned back to her computer screen, trying to figure how to make her existing battery last longer.

"I have a battery at the house that I made myself, so if you don't mind would you go to the house and get it?" Coco faced him with a sour, sisterly expression. "Please?"

Crash grunted as he stretched out his back, and then staggered slightly as he stood. As he walked away he called without even turning around.

"When I get back I expect a pile of wamba fruit prepared for my trouble."

"The house isn't even half a block away."

"It's far enough."

--

Crash tromped through the woods, hands plunged deep in his pockets. Not even the bright midday sun could pull him out of the depths of his exhaustion. He had spent the entire day snoozing between snacks, and all that rest could tire any body out. Crash yawned so wide he felt his jaw click in protest, and although he was tempted to stop for a quick nap, he was set on his mission. His sister wanted a battery, and a battery she would get. And if he was not rewarded for his efforts, that battery would be thrown into the ocean. Crash giggled at that. Unfortunately, the two of them were at a point in their relationship where they detested each other. It was as though that mindset was a genetic normality, and there was nothing neither brother nor sister could do about it. Regardless, Coco was a good kid, and Crash was more than happy to take a good quarter hour out of his day to assist.

"Where are you off to, Crash Bandicoot?"

Crash marched past Aku Aku, floating stationary as his fascinations with a strange plant were momentarily forgotten. Crash offered a quick salute with his head still lowered as he continued on his path.

"Just elder-brother duties, nothing to worry yourself over."

"Be careful Crash, I have yet to discover all the forces of unrest on this island, and there could very well be more dangers I am unaware of."

"Yeah, sure, see yah."

Crash didn't bother lifting his head, following the path through his mind's eye. If he ran into a tree, well, it wasn't the worst thing that could happen, certainly not enough to for him to open his eyes while he walked. Aku Aku was a good guy, but he was far too cautious, and quite overprotective of Coco. Crash had that particular jeer listed to his sister-irking list, for she couldn't stand Aku's constant fatherly supervision. If Crash had thought to look where he was going, he may have noticed that he started walking off the main path. He would have also noticed that he had never wandered through this part of the jungle before. He would have noticed still that if he remained on his current course, that he would walk directly between two ancient pillars that appeared rather suspicious. Unfortunately, Crash's memory wasn't the greatest, and he still believed himself to be walking pleasantly on the proper path. When he finally looked up, he was already in the midst of a problem.

"Oh, this can't be good." Crash moaned, feeling quite strange as a few gold strands of light whirled around him.

He couldn't move, and each of his cells felt as though they were trying to pull away. Crash's eyes slanted toward one of his arms, and noticed with surprisingly undisturbed fascination that his limb was disintegrating into yellow dust. An instant later, the golden sands completely enshrouded Crash Bandicoot, and a moment after that, the space between the pillars was empty once again.


	3. Chapter 2: A Rather Undesirable Meeting

Crash Bandicoot 1: Chapter Two – A Rather Undesirable Meeting

When Crash's vision stopped swirling, he found himself in a very strange chamber. At first, he was sure he was dreaming. He probably dropped unconscious onto the jungle floor as he had done so many times in the past. Oh well, if he was asleep he wasn't in the mood to wake up any time soon. Suddenly, a massive mug materialized out of the darkness, and Crash realized who it was in an instant.

"Well, if I'm sleeping this is a pretty cruddy dream."

The large cranium in front of him was all too familiar, and the ugly face and massive letter N tattooed to his forehead settled the observation. It was Doctor Neo Cortex's massive head floated before him, and Crash was way too grossed out to be alarmed.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Crash Bandicoot. Welcome." Cortex's voice was distant, but still as deep and grating as it had ever been.

Crash looked up at the head absently. "Thanks mate, bout time you got a little more hospitable. Now, I have a question. Where the hell did you materialize from?"

"I apologize for the cruel means in which to bring you here, but I expected a written invitation would have been turned down."

Crash scratched his head in confusion. Could that creepy kook hear him, or was he ignoring him on purpose? It didn't really matter, since Crash wasn't in the mood to chat anyway. Yet one thing he did want to do was get out of this undesired déjà vu. Although before Crash could voice some concerns that would have gone unheard anyhow, Cortex said something that made Crash stop short.

"I need your help."

Now that was a switch. Cortex was more of an "I'm going to destroy you Crash Bandicoot!" kind of guy than one who asked for help. Crash cocked his head, and was about to say something, but didn't think Cortex would care even if he did hear it. He seemed rather engrossed in what he was saying.

"Surrounding you is a series of three portals. Each teleportation mechanism is connected to the gravitational force of the crystals. The crystals are what I desperately need you to obtain. All you must know for now is the fate of the world is at stake. Bring me the crystals Crash, and don't worry, we will speak again."

An instant later the image blinked out and Crash realized just at that moment that it was merely a hologram. That was a relief considering Crash's other guess.

"We'll speak again, sure. I don't remember doing any of the speaking, but alright."

Alone in the chamber, Crash slowly turned around, scanning each portal in turn. They were all completely identical, and Crash felt a suspicious feeling creep up though his spine.

"If you think I'm going into one of those things Cortex, you're damn crazy."

Crash had learned long ago that he would be better off trusting a smiling crocodile than Dr. Cortex, but as he checked the entire room, he couldn't find another way out. Crash scratched his head, contemplating what he should do. Did Aku of Coco know he was missing? Probably not, since Crash frequently found very unique places to hide so he could sleep. Crash moaned. He wasn't really too fond of the whole disintegrating procedure, but he didn't see another way out of the predicament. There was also the whole concept of Cortex being a good guy. Frankly, the whole concept made him want to hack. Yet at this moment, Crash wasn't in the mood to think about it. Right now, he needed to figure out how the heck he was going to escape this nightmare. And the only thing offering him any change of scenery was one of those whirling vortexes. Crash sighed.

"Okey dokey whirligig, let's tango."

Crash took at big step into the first vortex, and felt weird once again. Each atom stretched, and light swirled around him. The light intertwined with his fading limbs, and Crash grimaced in annoyance as the rest of him disappeared a moment later.


	4. Chapter 3: Cold Hard Crash

Crash Bandicoot 1: Chapter Three – Cold Hard Crash

Crash found himself subconsciously feeling a very cold breeze wash over him. Crash wasn't sure he could groan, but if he could, he would have. Wasn't it bad enough that the vortex spun him around so fast Crash wouldn't be surprised if it left his head behind? Now it thought it'd be fun to freeze him to death too? Well, Crash just about had enough of it. When he finally stopped swirling around, Crash opened his eyes. He scratched behind one ear.

"Well, isn't this just fantastic."

Crash had reluctantly found himself standing up to his ankles in the midst of a snowdrift. As he took a quick glance around he realized that the snow he now stood in stretched out quite far. So far, in fact, that Crash had immediately regretted the decision of stepping into the whirligig. Well, he supposed falling into a land covered in snow was better than some of his other suspicions. Crash grinned slowly. He was still astonished that he was able to know what something was when he had never seen it before. How the heck did he know this powdery white stuff was snow? He supposed it was just his superbly brilliant mind. Crash took one step forward, feeling quite confident in himself, when he suddenly fell head over heels down a slippery slope. He felt himself collide with a total of five rocks, and when he landed with a final face plant in the snow, he just lay there for a moment.

"Alright, so I got a nice zap of I.Q. from that generous doctor, happy now?" Crash mumbled in the snow.

Crash would have lain there in the snow all day, but his nose started to get numb. Eventually Crash rose to his knees and then slowly got to his feet. Despite the fact that he had taken quite a spill down a rocky hill, Crash found surprisingly unaffected. He shook himself off, and then decided he needed to figure out what he was planning to do about his situation. Last time he checked there weren't any snow sightings on the tropical islands, so he most defiantly wasn't anywhere near when he wanted to be. Well, as long as he was here, he decided he might as well enjoy the scenery. And was it ever pretty. Mountains powdered in sparkling white crystals, and snow-covered trees fanned out along the landscape surrounded him. The entire frozen world was indented with what looked like very deep caverns, and Crash made a mental note not to get too close any edges.

"Let me quickly dissect this situation before I spin off my rocker. Alright, walked through a portal thing, dematerialized…again, and now I'm in some place covered in snow." Crash felt his teeth begin to chatter. "A very cold place covered in snow. Now comes my next mode of pondering, how the hell am I going to get out of here?"

Crash needed to walk or he knew he'd freeze where he stood. He stepped through the deep snow, rubbing his arms vigorously as he remembered what Cortex had said.

_Bring me the crystals._

Crash snorted. "So when did I turn into your delivery boy? Jerk."

Yet Crash had began to think that the only way out of this mess was by getting a hold of one of these crystals. If Cortex was somehow controlling his transportation, then he most defiantly wouldn't allow him back without Crash getting him what he wanted. Crash stretched, feeling quite agitated at the whole situation.

"Well, sure. I've got nothing better to do, so I'll play your game. For now."

Despite the freezing cold and he slushy snow in his shoes, Crash decided the stroll was tolerably pleasant. He had moved out of the rocky terrain and was now making his way through a quaint forest. Thankfully, the snow was not nearly as deep here, and he was able to finally shake out his shoes. He was also quite excited to see that there was a pleasant little path that cut through the trees. As Crash continued on his way, he found himself wondering how he was ever going to find a crystal in this place. It could probably be anywhere, and since that dope Cortex didn't bother offering him any hints, Crash predicted he was going to be here for a while. A small snow crystal drifted down slowly and landed on Crash's nose. Crash halted for a moment, and then tilted his head upward.

_Well, would you look at that? It's snowing._

Crash forgot his freezing discomfort for a moment, and stood there and admired the snow falling from the foggy gray sky. If had been a hint warmer, he would have been quite content finding a nice place to lie down and take a nap. Yet he still wasn't sure about this place, and he wanted to keep moving. Crash stuffed his hands in his pockets and felt his shoulders hunch and he walked. Billows of warmed air encircled him on every exhale, and he focused on keeping his teeth from chattering. When he really thought about it, the place wasn't that cold. He was just used to intense heat. For crying out loud, he had fur, so what was he complaining about? Crash scanned the area, and his gaze passed over slopes on either side of him, angling toward a cave of some sort. As Crash moved closer, he noticed that it wasn't really a cave at all. It was more like a tunnel. The snow, although pretty, was quite wet when it settled on Crash's hair, so he was quite content to get out of it for even a moment. Crash stepped into the shelter of the tunnel, and shook off the drips of water off himself. He was getting used to the cold now, so he wasn't shaking anymore. Yet the longer he stood there without the warmth of movement, he began to feel cold chills dance up his limbs. The other side of the tunnel was just as open as the wintry scene behind him.

"Well, it looks okay. Then again, I'm not a very good judge of these kinds of things."

Crash had a tiny suspicion that walking out into the wide path was not a good idea. Well, another idea had yet to present itself, so Crash thought it best to take his chances. He strode into the open path, rejoicing that the sun had finally decided to grace him with its rays. Crash was so busy embracing the warmth, that he didn't notice two beady eyes open, concealed in a dark space above. Crash continued to stroll, oblivious, and the creature slowly began to move forward. Crash heard the scratching sound of tumbling rocks, and felt a very sharp shiver rake up his back. The orange hair on his neck flared, and finally he turned around. A jaw opened wide, exposing dozens of sharp teeth as long as Crash's forearm. It's beady red eyes glared down at him as it reached one massive paw down the overhang. Going by instinct alone, Crash guessed the beast was a polar bear. Although he had imagined a polar bear to be cute, fluffy and small, this one defiantly did not fit any of these categories. Crash backed away slowly, hands out in front of him uselessly.

"Whoa there fella. Sorry to wake you up. I'll just be…going."

The bear was drooling, and Crash noted with a brief wave of uneasiness that its mouth appeared to smile. Crash decided he had enough of this stalking business. If he couldn't outrun this hulk, he wasn't as awesome as he thought he was. Crash turned and dashed, feeling the earth quaking thud a moment later. Crash should have evaluated his options before charging out into the unknown, however, premeditated thought was not Crash's strong points. The trees lining the borders of the path were far to thick for Crash to consider leaping into. More likely the tangled weeds would bounce Crash back into the waiting jaws of the massive polar bear. Even better, the road before him was covered in wide pits. Crash sighed.

"Not the pits again."

Nevertheless, he couldn't possibly make a U-turn, for obvious reasons. So Crash charged toward the first pit and used all the muscle he could muster to propel himself over the pit. He landed roughly, but was able to use that off-balance dismount to roll right back up to his feet. He continued running, and dared to peek behind him to see how the bear was faring. To Crash's immense disappointment, the pit failed to slow the bear down even a step. It was still as fast as ever, grinning creepily. Crash shivered, and put on an extra burst of speed.

His feet pounded on the frozen ground, and after a distance Crash's swinging arms began to feel strained. Yet the bear wasn't slowing down, and if anything, it was catching up to Crash's exhausted pace. Surprisingly in the past, Crash was able to run for very long periods despite his lack of luster doing so. Though with his arms and legs half frozen it was very hard to keep his muscles moving. Crash grit his teeth.

"Why don't you go…chase something…your own…size?"

Suddenly, Crash noticed something, but it was only when he got closer that he smiled. Directly ahead and slightly to the left, there was a rock wall. Just beneath this wall was a narrow crack, and the key to Crash's escape. Crash's green eyes brightened as he summoned the last of his speed, and took off toward the stone. With an insane grin across his face, Crash brought his body close to the ground and slid gracefully through the crack. He felt the rock scrape against his skin as his momentum propelled him to the other side of the wall. A few more feet of sprawling, and Crash was lying on his back, breathing heavily. When he had the lung capacity, he started laughing.

He couldn't think of anything more humorous at the moment, and this was damn funny. Although one would wonder why the concept of barely being eaten by a ravenous bear could possibly be amusing. Perhaps it was Crash's close brush into the realm of insanity, but more likely it was his reckless excitement. His laugh echoed into a snicker as he assessed the damage. He was far too tired to move, so he remained in the spot he was. Just then, the rock wall above him vibrated loudly. Crash's smile disappeared as his adrenaline caused him to prop up on his elbows.

"No way."

The bear on the other side obviously hadn't eaten in a while. Or perhaps it was just stubborn. Crash angled his eyes.

_Well bear, I can me stubborn too._

Unfortunately, the bear's endeavor was a successful campaign, and Crash grimaced as pieces of rock began to fall. Crash was too exhausted to fall asleep, let alone continue to run. Crash rolled to his stomach, and as he viewed what sat before him, he sported the shadow of a grin.

"Well, I think the tide's beginning to turn."

A little bear that matched Crash's criteria perfectly was sitting pleasantly in the snow, looking at Crash with curiosity. Unlike the large monster pounding through the rock, this polar bear was quite cute. Crash rose shakily to his feet, trying to look as innocent as possible.

"Hey little bear, want to give me a hand?"

The bear just looked at him, cocking its head to one side. Crash winced as more of the wall began to collapse. Crash placed his hands together in a gesture of friendship. Or maybe a false sense of security was a better phrase. At the next slam into rock, Crash sailed through the air and tackled the bear. Crash grasped on tightly to the little bear as it began to run. Crash felt the final pieces of rock collapse, and silently urged the bear to pick up the pace. Thankfully, the small bear was quite a bit faster than the pursuer, for that Crash was thankful.

"Keep going little bear, you're doing great!" Crash encouraged as he kept his eyes on the massive creature galloping after them.

It was a good thing the tiny polar bear knew the snowy paths better then he did, because there seemed to be quite a few dead ends that Crash would have doubtlessly ran into. The bear also jumped over any pits in its way without any hesitation. For this Crash was grateful, and now he could just kick back and wait for the big bear to get tired. As usual, that hope was dashed in an instant. Crash noticed with a rising concern that his ride stopped moving. Looking down he could see why. The little bear's legs were still going, but its paws had no traction on the slippery ice they were stuck on.

"Come on! Use your claws or something!" Crash yelled at the bear, but it was no use.

The bear plopped down onto its butt and Crash slipped off rather ridiculously. With a look of utter horror, Crash saw that the huge bear was getting closer, and its teeth were shimmering so frighteningly that Crash had to fight not to faint. Using his fear induced adrenaline, Crash lifted the little bear which was a little easier said then done. Crash's shoe soles were slippery enough to skate on, so he pushed his legs to get him and his little companion out of this mess. Surprisingly, Crash's method of escape was actually pretty efficient. Though it was pretty hard with the small bear in tow, Crash still kept moving, confident that if he got to the hill not to far away his flee would be a breeze. Yet he hadn't accounted for the big bear's weight on the ice, and it also didn't occur to Crash to wonder how thick the ice was. Obviously, it wasn't thick enough, because when the bear stepped on it, the ice cracked. The sound of ice breaking caused Crash's jaw to tighten. It was a horrible sound, and even worse when that cracking ice was the only thing holding one up. The crack snaked between Crash's legs, and the latter rolled his eyes in irritation.

"Well this is just peachy." Was all Crash managed before he fell through the ice and plunged into the freezing water.

--

Coco scanned the screen before her, frustrated as her resolution began to fade away. Her nimble fingers typed furiously on the keyboard, but it was no use.

CHARGE BATTERY

Then the screen went blank. Coco growled angrily and snapped her screen forward, clapping it shut.

"Where is that idiot brother?" She spoke through clenched teeth.

Coco removed herself from her straddled position in the dirt, standing and dusting off her pants before she marched toward the house, her laptop under her arm. She could already see Crash napping somewhere along the path in her mind's eye. Her bright green eyes were angled with a promise that if she found him asleep he would receive a nice dunk of ice water. Even if Coco had to go to the trouble to get the water out of the well and cart the heavy bucket, it would be worth it. Yet as she continued to walk, she felt a strange feeling. A tiny wave of hesitation so small that she barely noticed it. Despite the inconsequential size of the feeling, Coco decided to err on the side of caution.

"Aku!"

Yet Aku Aku was nowhere to be found. Coco combed her fingers through her long ponytail, and then placed the same hand to border her mouth.

"Aku!"

Still the old mask didn't appear. Coco scratched her head. Well, she supposed she should grab her battery before she got Aku all worried. She would probably run into Crash on the way anyhow. Still…Coco was pretty sure something unusual was going on.

--

Crash decided there was nothing more unpleasant then plunging into ice water. He may as well have fallen into shards of glass since it had almost the same effect. Crash twirled underwater for a moment, and then was able to pull himself to the surface. He broke through the water into the cold air. He latched on to a floating piece of ice, which really did nothing for his freezing situation, but at least now he could breathe. He took a quick look around, and noticed with satisfaction that the scary bear was gone. Crash also saw that the little bear had made its way to land and was now pleasantly shaking itself off. Although thankful the bear had made it to safety, Crash couldn't fully appreciate it at the present moment. The hill that Crash had planned to skate down had transformed into a treacherous river of ice and jagged rock. Crash sighed, and gripped even tighter to his ice raft.

The ride down wasn't as terrible as Crash imagined, but he still wouldn't want to do it over again. He had collided with a few big rocks, and that smarted, but now, thankfully, he was on a pleasant little stream that was taking him who knows where. Crash lay on his back, ignoring the cold, and glanced up at the sky.

"So, the plan is this. I find that dumb crystal, wherever the hell that is, and then once I have it I'll break it into a million pieces and just pretend it slipped. It is a plausible occurrence."

Yet as Crash restudied his plan, he realized that he needed some kind of leverage to get him out of this snowy wasteland. And shattering the crystal, although tempting, would not get him very far tactically. Crash stretched out on his floating ice bed, and planned to take a rejuvenating nap. Unfortunately, the moment he shut his eyes his raft collided with a rock and tipped it over. Crash, wet, cold and unhappy, sloshed out of the freezing shallows and shook himself off.

"I just can't catch a break here." Crash complained as he squeezed the water out of his hair.

As he dried off, he took the time to consider where he was, also where he was planning to go. He had unintentionally floated into an open cavern. He could see the sky clearly, but rocky walls surrounded him at every angle. Crash cocked his head. The only way he could get out of here was by swimming, and since the water was bloody cold there was no way that was likely to happen. He could try to climb the walls, but he noted disdainfully that the sides of the cavern were covered in ice. Crash plopped himself down on a rock, calculating what he needed to do. There was no way out of here, and that was depressing. Crash also realized that he was getting hungry, and he hadn't noticed any wamba fruit down here at all. What frightened him even more than being trapped in an impenetrable cavern was the fact that he may go without dinner.

"Well this stinks." Crash announced to no one in particular.

Normally, he was not so bitter, but when he was frozen, wet and hungry, the sensation tended to come quite swiftly. Crash got up off his feet and started to pace, thinking. Since thinking was not one of Crash's strong suits, the reason he paced was for the sole purpose of colliding with his answer. And, more often than not, that's exactly what happened. As Crash stepped closer to the cavern wall, his ear twitched, and he heard a very unwelcome cracking noise.

"Oh…darnnit."

Just as the words were spoken, the ice crumbled beneath Crash Bandicoot's feet. Crash slid, along with the ice, down an enclosed tunnel. He was thankful at least that the sides weren't sharp, but as he slid quickly across the ice he was sure he could feel some kind of wound servicing. He couldn't control his crazy decent, and so he just let momentum throw him around for a while. The tunnel was not completely dark, thanks to some reflective ice crystals, but Crash doubted the light would last. Yet, it wasn't the first time Crash found himself wandering around in the dark, so the idea didn't concern him much. He slid for an absurdly long amount of time, and when he decided he could pass the era with a nap, he noticed something disturbing approach fast. The end of the tunnel. The _dead_ end of the tunnel. Crash let out a noise that sounded like "Yike!" and took immediate action.

He reached above him and stuck his claws into the tunnel roof. Of course, his claws were not nearly strong enough to penetrate the ice, but he felt satisfied as little ice shavings were produced from his endeavor. Unfortunately he was not slowing down fast enough, and he prepared to make a very painful thump.

He was all ready for a collision, that when the end of the tunnel shattered and he found himself momentarily flying through the air, he was quite confused. He was still in a state of bewilderment even as he rolled a few times and then lay in a stunned heap in the snow. Slowly, Crash sat up and rubbed a bump on his head.

"Wow, what a rush."

His voice echoed throughout the cave in which he found himself. Crystals of ice sent colourful shafts of light dancing throughout the cavern, and despite Crash's recent stresses, he felt a grin rise to his face.

"Well, isn't that pretty?"

Yet these ice crystals were not what Crash was looking for, he was pretty sure of that. Since that dummy Cortex didn't give him a lot of information on his "mission", Crash was left to fill in the blanks himself. If this crystal was so special, it probably didn't look like the others. Crash was feeling quite agitated that he didn't get anymore information, but he continued to remain optimistic. As Crash began to saunter through the caverns, he had a mind to grab one of these ice crystals and be done with it. If the thing melted before Cortex could do whatever underhanded thing he was planning, that wasn't Crash's problem. Crash chuckled to himself at the concept. As Crash rounded the corner, he suddenly felt a light brighter than the others cause him to shade his eyes.

"Hey, what the heck?"

When Crash's eyes adjusted, he took a look to what had nearly blinded him. He smirked when he saw it.

"Alright, now we're in business."

A breathtaking violet crystal shimmered before him, suspended within an embrace of stone. The light dancing off this sparkling gem was far prettier than the ice crystals Crash had seen a moment ago. Rubbing his hands together excitedly as he advanced, Crash felt an odd sensation. He felt mesmerized by the purple fire that danced within the center of the stone. As he placed his hands on it, his grin spread even wider.

"Hey beautiful." He uttered through his smile, feeling quite disturbingly like a magpie.

It took a fare amount of strength to heave the crystal from its resting place, but Crash ultimately succeeded. It was smaller than he originally thought, but it was still amazingly dazzling. He marveled at it a moment more, before he snapped out of his trance and returned to the present.

"Holy, now that's what I call a shiny rock."

Crash realized that he needed to use this thing to get him out of this Cortex mess, and although he would be satisfied to stay in this cave with his new treasure, he was sure he would never get used to the climate. Crash held the crystal under his arm and started off once again, looking for an opening that he could squeeze through.

--

Coco hadn't run into Crash on the way to the house, and he most defiantly was not there. She stood in the living room with a puzzled look on her face.

"Where could he be?" She asked the empty house, not expecting an answer.

With a shrug, Coco knelt down and rummaged within the basket she filled to the brim with gizmos and gadgets. She hated to throw anything away, knowing that everything could come in handy for her inventions. Digging deep into the materials Crash so often referred to as junk, Coco finally wrapped her hand around what she was looking for. With an enthused grin, Coco attached the power source to her computer and rebooted it. The screen blinked back on, and once again Coco was back to full power. She smacked her hands together.

"_Yes_." She laughed in self-satisfaction.

She exited the house and prepared to find a nice spot to continue her recalibrations, but suddenly she stopped. Although it was not unusual for Crash to disappear all day, loafing, eating and sleeping, Coco could not banish the feeling that something was wrong. She set her laptop down and gathered her breath, preparing to bellow for Aku Aku.

"Coco?"

Coco yelped and jumped back, eyes wide with surprise. When she calmed herself, instantly embarrassed, she whirled on Aku.

"Do you mind? You could give me a heart attack sneaking around like that."

Aku dipped, causing the feathers adorning his head to wave in the wind. "Apologies Coco. I just came to inquire if anything was troubling you. You look distressed."

"I'm not _distressed_." Coco moaned in a childlike tone. "I was just _wondering_ where Crash went. I haven't seen him for awhile and I was _wondering_ if you have seen him."

Aku didn't seem to catch on to Coco's obvious emphasizing, and seemed to ponder for a moment.

"Yes, I have seen him. He seemed to be on quite the trek to gather something for you."

Coco scratched one ear, and felt quite uncomfortable as she lowered her voice.

"He's probably just napping or something just as lazy and stupid. But…can you make sure he didn't fall into a pit or anything?"

Coco had a difficult time getting it out, and when Aku smiled at her she turned away roughly. He could tell that despite how much Coco pretended to despise her brother, she truly cared about him. Although Coco knew that deep down, she still didn't want to broadcast it.

"Of course Coco. I was meaning to locate him soon anyway. He'll be glad to know you are concerned about his well being."

Aku glided away just as Coco's jaw dropped.

"Aku! Don't you dare!"

--

It was surprisingly easy to find a way out of the cavern, and the swiftness of his exit was most welcome. He was so frozen he could see frost collecting on his orange fur. He felt his teeth chatter unmercifully, and he realized he needed to get out of this freezer as quickly as possible. Crash crawled out of a crack in the cave, and found himself with a face full of snow once again.

"I have never seen snow before this dandy little trip, and I'm already…sick…of the damn stuff." Crash groaned as he pulled himself out of the cave and into the open air. Crash lay there on his back, staring at the sky.

"I'm COLD!" Crash yelled, quite irritated at the moment.

Crash could hear a distant rumbling, and as he gazed upward, all he could do was stare with a blank look. He could see a small cannel chopping through a massive collection of snow, and cracking had not yet subsided. Crash placed a hand behind his head and crossed one leg over the other.

"Okay, sure. You want to go there with me. Fine. I'm not going anywhere."

Some pieces of ice rained down on Crash like little white splinters. Crash continued to lie there, using the crystal as a pillow as he waited.

A crazy grin spread across his face. "It's just you and me now."

The ice began to rain down even more, and Crash's stubbornness remained intact. Abruptly, Crash heard another noise other than the popping and cracking of breaking snow. Crash rolled over and his eyebrows furrowed as though he was looking at something very strange. Conceivable, since he was doing exactly that. The air a little ways away was spinning around unnaturally, and an instant later a weird looking contraption appeared. As it hovered there, Crash stared at it, quite confused. To him, it looked like some kind of portal, and that was good enough for him. Scrambling to his feet, Crash tossed all sense of bravery to the wind and sprinted to the floating machine. Holding the crystal tightly under one arm, Crash had a hard time dodging the falling ice that had grown quite a bit bigger. The ground, too, begin to quake, but Crash continued his sprint without too much falter, which was surprising. Crash didn't risk looking behind him, and with a massive leap, landed in the path of the scientific thingy. As the world churned around him, Crash offered a salute to the cascading snow.

"Let it be known that not even a mountain of snow can stop Crash Bandicoot!" He called as he began to disappear.

"Details may be exaggerated." Crash added a little more quietly.

Crash wrapped both arms around the crystal and held it as tightly as possible. Then his entire form disintegrated, just as a river of grating ice and snow flooded the open cavern.


	5. Chapter 4: Road to Ruin

Crash Bandicoot 1: Chapter Four – Road to Ruin

Crash felt quite lightheaded as he materialized again. He stumbled forward, and then shook off the spinning sensation and gathered his surroundings. Once again, Crash found himself in the warp room he had originally found himself. He noticed he was still powdered in snow, so he dusted himself off. Instantly, he remembered the treasure he held in his hands. He admired it again, smiling as he caught his own handsome reflection settled in the amethyst depths.

Suddenly, the precious stone began to fade away. Crash gasped as the crystal slowly became translucent, and transformed into a flurry of violet dust. Crash would have been upset if he wasn't so shocked, but even more of a surprise was the next instant. The dust whirled around Crash, and it seemed as though it actually passed through him. After the dust disappeared, Crash stood there with a bewildered look on his face.

"What the…?"

Then he felt as though his insides were glowing, as if he ate something thick and hot, and it took a moment for him to realize that the crystal had actually passed into him. To test his theory, Crash concentrated on making the crystal reappear again. Just as quickly as it had disappeared, the crystal became solid once again in Crash's hands. Crash was more than a little perplexed by this. He was able to retract the crystal back inside himself just as a hologram appeared above him. It was Cortex, again.

"Well done Crash. I knew I could rely on you. Now that you have attained one of the three crystals, you must be aware on what I need them for. A massive energy is transcending the planet's natural limit, and as a result the world's inhabitants will cease to exist. I require these crystals for the purpose of redirecting that energy and keeping the earth safe."

Crash stuffed his hands in his pockets with a playful grimace. "With all do respect, Doctor, that's a load of bull."

Cortex continued as though he didn't hear Crash, and indeed he probably didn't.

"If we are to rescue the planet Crash, you must continue to collect the crystals. Good luck to you."

And then the ugly hologram was gone, for which Crash was eternally grateful. Yet Crash still couldn't get the thought of Cortex wanting to help the world out of his mind. Wasn't this the same guy who wanted to take over the planet with his army of mutant animals? Crash knew first hand how well that turned out. Crash couldn't figure out what his plan was, but since the quest was for a good cause, he didn't feel that guilty about helping out that jerk of a doctor. With a sigh, Crash turned to the next portal, and stepped forward.

"This is turning out to be a real pain…" Crash grunted as he moved into the path of whirling light.

--

Coco couldn't seem to find her concentration. She was typing without falter, but soon she realized that what she was writing didn't make sense. She had to delete more sequences than she typed, and it was starting to get on her nerves.

"Coco!"

Coco's head snapped up at Aku's call, and where she would have hidden in any other circumstance, she returned the shout.

"I'm right here!"

Aku burst out of the trees, looking quite frantic. Coco felt her adrenaline burn within her, but she didn't show it. She angled her brows.

"What is it?"

"Crash is no where on this island." Aku spoke with a rise in his voice. "Not on any of the islands in fact. In this I am positive."

Now Coco did get to her feet. "Well…where can he be?"

Aku gave her a stern look. "Coco, I need you to stay right here while I go and find him. Do you understand me?"

Coco placed her hands on her hips. "No way. He's my brother and I'm going to look for him."

Her courage faded as Aku looked at her as severely as he ever had before. "Stay here Coco. I don't want to loose you both. This situation is probably not a serious one, but we must be cautious nonetheless."

Then Aku Aku disappeared again, gliding quickly through the jungle. Coco sagged to the ground, mumbling angrily under her breath. Why was it that Aku always expected the only thing she was good at was getting into more trouble? She knew she'd be able to handle an adventure. It wasn't fair that her brother was such a lazy butt and he had already saved the world once. Coco brought her knees up and laid her chin across them with a deadly look churning within her light green eyes. Her gaze fell to her laptop, and she slowed felt a smile emerge. She cancelled her previous calculation and prepared to start a new challenge. Find Crash and figure out what the heck was going on.

--

As the portal dropped Crash into another peculiar place, he found the trip to be less jarring. He guessed he was just getting used to being turned into particles and flung around relentlessly. Whatever the reason, Crash welcomed it. He didn't like getting headaches. They bugged him. Crash yawned and stretched his arms above his head. When recovered from the monstrous yawn he stepped toward the edge of the platform he was currently standing on. Wiping his gaze across what lay before him, he whistled and ran his hand though his hair.

"Well, isn't that just fantastic?"

Although the ground was so dark Crash couldn't even make out anything down there, a city of ruins seemed to emerge from nothing. The sky was dark, but sporadically brightened by flashes of lightening. It was also raining, but since Crash was under a quaint little construction with a roof, he wasn't wet. At least, not at present. He wasn't looking forward to having to explore this creepy ancient city, especially in the rain. Yet although Crash wasn't fond of getting wet, he wanted to get through this dreary task as quickly as possible. So, without further hesitation, Crash leapt onto the next stone platform. Thankfully, Crash found the rain to be quite refreshing, and much more pleasant to wander through than snow. As Crash jumped from platform to platform, he began to grow a little cocky, as usual.

"Hey, this is a piece of cake."

Crash had barely finished the statement before the platform beneath him crumbled. Crash yelped and bounced off the unstable ruin. He landed quite ungracefully on his stomach, and when he slowly propped himself up on his elbows, he had a sluggish look on his face.

"I've lost count of how many things have failed to stay up under me. What's the deal?" Crash rose to his feet and continued to walk. "I'm not a big guy by any stretch, so there shouldn't be any problem."

Crash was still thinking about it when he noticed a small popping sound. The noise was so quiet it should have been inconsequential, but Crash had finally learned not to trust any little noises. Crash dove out of the way just as a burst of flame erupted behind him. It was so close that the fire had singed his pants. Crash sighed and got back to his feet. This place reminded Crash a little of the ruins that he needed to get through back home, yet he felt quite a bit more comfortable there, despite all the booby traps. These temples seemed quite eerie, and Crash decided it was probably just because it was dark. Crash looked up to concentrate on where he was walking, and found himself face to face with a very terrifying statue.

"Eek!" Crash shrieked as the thunder cracked.

Shaking off his unmanly outburst, Crash got up again and continued on his way.

--

Dr. Nitrous Brio blinked slowly, trying to calm his racing mind. He knew of Cortex's dastardly plan, and it was only a matter of time for his old colleague realized it. Though Brio did not have the recourses to create a grand space station, he was still able to concoct a maneuverable shuttle to hold his experiments. The lab within it was small but still satisfactory. After Crash had returned Brio's creations to him, the latter was able to make some minor adjustments. He had already used the evolvo-ray to create a few minions, but he had no need for the Cortex Vortex to make them mindless drones. Brio had always believed that evolved animals could perform their duties better if they had their wits.

Brio grimaced as he heard a loud smashing noise from within, shaking his lab slightly. He caught an instrument before it fell to the ground and shook his head. Unfortunately, some of the animals he evolved were already not too bright to begin with. The Tasmanian tiger he had evolved, for instance, had no desire to talk to Brio about what was irking it. Despite his rise of anger and desire for vengeance, Brio still had a nervous disposition. Yet he kept the tiger for the solitary purpose of defending his delicate plan. Brio touched a button, and some intricate designs whirled across the screen. Using his advanced machinery, he could pinpoint where Crash Bandicoot, Cortex's crystal collector, was at all times. When Brio got a lock on the bandicoot, he leaned back and scratched his head. He had been astoundingly surprised when he discovered Crash was in league with Cortex. Brio would never have suspected the bandicoot would join up with the deranged doctor, not in a lifetime. Yet he had obviously been wrong about the measure of that creature's intelligence. No matter, he would make sure Cortex did not get those crystals no matter what the cost. Brio activated his communication device.

"Komodo One, respond."

There was a static on the other line, and finally the call was received.

"Komodo One reporting _sss_ir." The voice hissed smoothly. "What are your order_sss_?"

"There is no other way through the t-t-temple." Brio was still fighting to control his stuttering problem, but so far it proved unsuccessful. "The bandicoot will come doubtlessly c-c-come to you. Intercept him, and t-t-take what crystals he has r-r-recovered."

"Ye_sss_ boss_ss_." Brio was chilled at the eagerness in the other's voice.

"One more t-t-thing." Brio added. "Do not k-k-kill the bandicoot if he c-c-cooperates. I wish to speak with h-h-him before anything more is d-d-done."

The voice was obviously disappointed. "It _sss_hall be done _sss_ir."

Then the connection was broken. Brio tossed his communicator back onto the table. He was still uneasy about all of this, but he decided he needed to speak to Crash Bandicoot. If the bandicoot did not surrender to him, Brio feared he would have to take measures to ensure that he would not ruin his plan. Whatever that entailed.

--

Crash was a little hesitant about going into the large temple that towered before him. In the past, going into ancient structures did not usually turn out very well. Especially since these structures turned out to never be abandoned. Gulping back his hesitation, Crash strode into the temple. A good thing about being inside was that he would have time to dry. Shaking off his fur as he progressed, Crash had expected the temple to be quite dark. To his surprise, there seemed to be quite a few torches lighting the walls. It was astounding how much they resembled the lost city on N. Tensity island, but Crash had tromped all over those ruins and he was defiantly not in the same place. Although the fire brought enough light that Crash didn't walk into anything, it was still sporadic. So Crash leaned his hand against the wall and followed it through the dim light, hoping the path didn't split off. He thought he was making pretty good time as he kept his steady pace, and was actually surprised that nothing had jumped out at him yet. Perhaps the people who built this place didn't believe in booby traps. Crash kyboshed that idea as he remembered the fire outside. However, it always paid to be a little optimistic. Crash decided optimism was not the best route to take, especially when he stepped on a diamond stone and felt it lower under his weight. Crash winced as he heard a very loud rumbling coming from far away.

"Well, so much for karma. I'm guessing I'm in massive trouble."

Indeed he was. Crash guessed that the noise growing louder by the moment was water, and if that was the case, the water would flush him out of the temple and send him out into the blackened depths. He needed to get out of the path of it, so he started sprinting deeper into the labyrinth. He was muttering some dreadfully frustrated curses as he ran closer to the rushing water. He rounded the corner, and grinned fiendishly as he found where he needed to go. About midway down the hall was a hole in the roof. Crash could just faintly see a dim glow coming from the hole, so obviously it led somewhere. The temple was now vibrating so loudly Crash could hear ringing in his ears. He started off again at a dead run for the hole, but felt his heat skip a beat as he saw water begin to flow toward him. Gritting his teeth with a near insane smile, he sped up, now in a race to beat the rushing water to the hole. Soon, the bulk of the water rushed around the corner and was heading straight toward him. The waves charged toward him like jaws, but Crash didn't slow down. In the nick of time, Crash positioned himself over the hole and jumped as high as he could. Unfortunately there was nothing for him to grasp on to. Instead of falling into certain death, Crash twisted, and held himself suspended only by his limbs pressing against the narrow tube of an opening. He didn't risk looking below him, but focused on above. There defiantly was some kind of light coming from above. Crash repositioned, and used his back and legs to slowly move up the tube. If he broke his leverage, he would be plummeting back into the river of water, and that was not on Crash's agenda. Crash continued to move quite slowly up the tube, wondering how he could make the trip any easier. Suddenly, his legs felt wet, and his heart began to pound so hard his chest ached. The water was already catching up to him, and if it surpassed his insufficient progress, Crash would be in really big trouble.

"Alright, no more dawdling. Let's get a move on."

Following his own motivational tactic, Crash moved his arms and legs so fast he could feel his muscles burn. He was out of the water now, and was making his way to the top at a very quick pace. He grinned, knowing he was going to make it. Without any warning, Crash's hand slipped and the bandicoot fell from his position on the wall and plummeted. He crashed through the water, and was momentarily stunned as he floated there underwater. Then he realized what had happened.

_Shit._

Using the walls to assist him, Crash kicked his feet to reach air. He broke through the surface still using his legs to keep him afloat, and violently swung his head to get his hair out of his eyes. He needed to get out of this tube and away from the water before the stuff drained. The suction would no doubt yank him right back down, and frankly, Crash didn't want all his hard earned progress to go to waste. When he was close enough, Crash boosted himself out of the water and grasped onto the top of the narrow shaft. His feet were still dangling in the water, but know he was able to maneuver. Crash groaned as he hoisted himself out of the shaft, and as he lay there on his stomach he could hear the thick flush of the water draining. Crash's eyes were closed out of fatigue, and he would have been happy just to let them remained closed so he could sleep. Unfortunately, he was on a deadline. Crash got to his knees and shook the water out of his amber fur.

"So much for keeping dry." He mumbled to himself.

Crash looked up, and was quite thankful to see a beautiful shrine with a very precious piece of his mission contained within it. This crystal shone just as brightly as the other one had, and Crash was very happy to see it. He forced his feet to walk, and concentrated on one foot in front of the other lest he fall flat on his face. Crash grasped the crystal and lifted it from its protected place within the shrine. Just as he touched it, this one faded as well, locking itself within Crash's body. That part still freaked him out, he wasn't embarrassed to say, but at least he didn't have to cart the bulky things around wherever he went. Crash moved quickly out of the shrine, knowing some unseen danger was probably going to jump out at him at any moment.

--

Coco's fingers were starting to grow numb as she hacked her way through network after network. There was some signal tracing back to N. Sanity Island, but every time Coco tried to access it, she was blocked. She was getting quite fed up with the whole thing, but wasn't about to give up. She clicked furiously on her keyboard, and continued her attempt to break the lock so she could proceed. Suddenly, a light blinked admittance onto her screen, one that Coco was quite excited to see. She clicked a few more times, only to find herself stuck once again. She had broken through the first of the security systems, and she was not surprised to find out that Dr. Cortex was transmitting the signal. This was the same Cortex who Crash had fought, and, from what Coco could conclude, killed. Crash hadn't openly admitted it of course, but who could survive a hundred foot drop? Coco was glad she was making progress, but needed to take it a step further. To burrow her way into Cortex's computer, she needed to access a password. She had studied many of the most unbreakable codes on the Internet, just for some fun. Now that bit of knowledge was going to come in handy. Coco took a deep breath, stretched her fingers, and began.

--

After sliding through the shaft back to the ground, Crash darted quickly through the maze of hallways, starting to get a tad frustrated. The water was still draining, and shoes full of water wasn't getting Crash in any better a mood. Crash jogged through the shallow water, thinking he was on his way back to the exit. Yet all the chambers he passed through looked exactly the same. Soon, most of the water had dried up and Crash was walking on bare stone. He thought he'd be doomed to walk the narrow halls forever, when, with a jolt of excitement, he saw a door. At this point he wasn't worried where the door would lead, he was just hoping for a change of scenery. Crash threw open the door and bolted inside. Then he stood for a moment, looking around calculatedly.

"I wanted different, so I can't complain." He murmured, scratching his head.

This chamber was quite a bit larger than any he had previously entered. There were some long, artistically crafted pillars that bordered a rounded dome of a roof. Above, some very confusing yet quite beautiful designs were painted along the dome, and beneath it laid a circular pool of water. A spectacular fountain towered in the center, and sent slender streams drizzling into the lagoon below. The designs were reflected in the shallow water, and Crash wandered forward to get a better look.

Crash caught a movement from out of the corner of his eye, and ducked just as a shaft of metal hissed through the air over his head. Crash dove into a shoulder roll and snapped up to his feet.

"What did I _sss_ay? Do not kill the bandicoot!"

Crash furrowed his brow in bemused hesitation. His attacker was apparently a giant lizard, or so it appeared. He was pretty massive, and was dressed in a strange purple dress, or something. What really concerned Crash was that the lizard was holding a impressively huge sword. Beside him was another lizard, but this one was far thinner then his scaly companion. Crash guessed the thin lizard was the one that spoke about not killing him, and Crash was pleased for that.

"I'm appreciative for the discretion mate, I gotta say, most people would rather knock me off first and ask questions later."

"Do not believe that we would prefer it thi_sss_ way." The thin lizard hissed. "If we had it our way, you'd be…_hissss_…decapitated."

Crash's slight smile dimmed, and he offered a half-hearted shrug.

"Well, don't feel guilty about it. I already pretty much figured that."

The skinny lizard glared at him with contempt, and the larger one looked as if he was ready to leap in for the kill. Crash remained unmoved, and unhesitant. The scrawny lizard stepped forward, his clawed hand positioned on the hilt of his sword.

"I am Komodo Joe. This i_sss_ my cohort and brother, Komodo Moe." Komodo Joe angled his eyes as Crash started to snicker, but continued on as if nothing had fazed him. "We have been _sss_ent by one who desire_sss_ those crystal_sss_ you are gathering."

Crash crossed his arms defiantly. "So, what gives you guys the idea that I have any?"

Komodo Joe grinned slowly and quite creepily. "The magic of the crystal ha_sss_ left an impression in your eye_sss_. It is quite obviou_sss_ you hold them."

Crash frowned. "What?"

Komodo Joe flipped his hand in a dismissive gesture. "No matter. We know you have them, and that is all that need concern you. Now give them to us, and you _sss_hall not be harmed."

Crash thought about it for a second. If giving these crystals to these lunatics would get him home, he would be fine with that. But if what Cortex said was true, although doubtful, Crash decided it would be better for him to keep them for the time being.

"No can do fellas. I think it would be best if I keep an eye on them."

Komodo Moe made some kind of growling noise and stepped forward.

"I don't care what the doctor _sss_ays." His hiss was a lot deeper than his brother's. "Let'_sss_ finish him now."

Before Joe could stop him, even if he had intended to, the large dragon lifted his sword with surprising grace and lunged at Crash. The latter darted out of the way nimbly with a sour look on his face.

"Wait a minute. Isn't this a little unfair? Two against one and you guys both have swords." The dragon attacked again and Crash leapt over his head, landing softly behind him. He smirked. "I think I may have an excessive advantage, being smaller, quicker..." Crash dodged another attack. "…and handsomer."

Komodo Joe stood there with his hands clasped calmly behind his back. "There is no hope for a peaceful exchange if he doe_sss_ not cooperate. Perhaps if we destroy him, the crystal_sss_ with reemerge."

Crash leapt high as Moe's sword swung underneath him. He used his momentum and flipped backward to gain more ground.

"Honestly, I don't think that's really going to help much." Crash admitted as continued dancing away from the lethal sword swipes. "But that's just one bandicoot's opinion."

Despite Crash's confident jeers, he was pretty sure he'd have a problem it Komodo Joe leapt into the fray. As it stood now, he seemed to think his brother could handle a scrawny marsupial. Crash hoped to keep it that way until he could formulate a plan. Moe's sword crashed downward, and Crash dipped out of the way as the ground shook with intensity. Crash gulped. If he was too slow to dodge an attack, Crash could be cleaved in half in one stroke. Crash forced that picture out of his mind and leapt onto the first level of the fountain. Crash grumbled as he splashed into the bowl.

_Oh shoot, wet shoes again._

Crash looked down with a sly smile at Komodo Moe.

"Hey, before I forget, I just wanted to comment on how nice your dress looks." Crash giggled to himself. "Brings out the colour in your eyes."

Moe roared in anger and slammed his sword against the base of the fountain. Crash teetered, but caught himself before he tumbled off the side.

"Whoa, easy there. This is a rare ancient structure you're hacking at you know." Crash explained reasonably. "You wouldn't want to be involved in the desecration of a hundred-year-old relic would you?"

Moe continued to use his sword as a club against the fountain, and Crash stumbled back with a disapproving look on his face.

"Alright. I tried."

As quickly as was possible, which was considerable in Crash's case, Crash pulled himself up each level of the fountain, getting wetter and wetter as he ascended. He really had no idea at this point what his plan was, since it was obvious that if the fountain did fall, Crash would not be in the best position. Finally, Crash reached the top, and what he found up there made him grin. The very pinnacle of the fountain was some kind of creepy creature, but it looked as though it could be used as a projectile. Crash used the skill that never seemed to fail, the tried and true spinning technique. As he spun, he collided with the base of the weird statue. It took only a moment for the thing to topple over, and another for Crash to slam it against the topmost bowl and break it into throwable pieces.

"Get down here bandicoot!" Moe bellowed from underneath.

Crash leaned over the side, head propped eloquently on his hand. "You know, I think I'll be more comfortable up here, at least, until you stop flinging that sharp thing around."

Komodo Joe had made his way a little closer to the fight, or where the fight should have been. "Crash Bandicoot, I _sss_uggest you come down here _sss_o we can di_sss_cu_sss_ this mi_ssss_understanding."

"Tell you what, you quit trying to knock me off this thing, and I'll come down." Crash had no intention of doing so, but he also didn't feel like sitting in this fountain all day.

When Joe offered agreement, and Crash swung his legs over the side in the illusion he was going to slide down to the ground. Crash wasn't surprised when Moe smashed at the base once again, and because of this foresight Crash hadn't plummeted to certain death. Pulling himself back into the safety of the top bowl, Crash hefted the heaviest of his weapons.

"Okay down there, you asked for it!" Crash hollered from above.

Crash used all the power he could muster to through the ivory stones at the big lizard. Moe and Joe jumped out of the way to avoid being pelted, and as Crash kept whirling stones he realized it was not going to last very long. He had to formulate another plan, and quickly. Yet he needn't have worried about it. Right as he was about to toss his last projectile, he saw a blade sail through the air. He was so shocked that it was pure luck that he was able to twist slightly to avoid the most lethal of the blow. The steel sliced across Crash's arm, and in his futile effort to protect himself, Crash's twirl caused him to flip over the side of the fountain. As Crash flailed through the air, he made a mental note that the wound was not serious, but he was pretty sure the fall would be. Crash called upon his aerobic ability and began to spin through the air, and was very satisfied when he realized he was gliding himself down to the ground. Unfortunately, while he was flying through the air he hadn't a hope of directing his fall. He landed hard on a very large object, and when Crash opened his eyes he was staring into the livid yet quite surprised eyes of Komodo Moe. Crash glowered at him.

"You know, it's dangerous to throw knives like that."

Crash was about to say more, but was interrupted as Moe roughly pushed him off. Crash landed flat on his back, and as he laid there, he thought that behavior was slightly unnecessary. After all, he was the one who almost had his arm severed. Now Komodo Joe stood over him, a devious look sparkling in his garnet eyes.

"_Ssss_o long, bandicoot."

Joe reared his sword back and prepared to chop through his orange adversary. Crash widened his eyes as he realized there was nothing he could do to escape this time. That didn't mean he wouldn't try. As the sword came down, Crash rolled quickly out of the way. He gained confidence as Joe's sword clanged on the marble floor. Yet Moe's sword was already in motion, and Crash had time to see his own horrified reflection in the steel before he shielded his eyes. At first, Crash had convinced himself that he was dead, despite the fact there was no pain and he was still hungry. He heard a surprised grunt, and this gave him the courage to take a look. Moe's sword was glowing with a magenta glow, and by the way the lizard was fiddling with it, the sword looked as though it was hot. Moe cursed as he let his weapon drop to the ground with a clattering echo. Joe had recovered from his first attack, and prepared to swipe Crash's head from his shoulders. This time, Crash kept his eyes open. Joe's sword changed the same way his brother's had. It began glowing and Joe let it fall from his grasp as though it burned him. The instant Crash focused on the stationary swords, they shattered into rose-coloured shards. A moment later, those shards disappeared, and only a faint pink residue left any trace of their existence. The lizards stared at Crash with their jaws hanging open in bafflement. Crash was just as if nor more surprised at what had occurred. Not that he was complaining about it. At least he was still alive. Crash grinned.

"Take that."

The dragons seemed to be looking at Crash quite strangely. Crash glanced himself over to see what had perplexed them so much, and so saw the reason with widened eyes. Crawling across his forearms in delicate swirling patterns were magenta markings, sparkling with their own light. Crash frowned.

_What the heck was going on here?_

As quickly as the stains appeared, they were gone, fading back into Crash's orange fur. Crash noticed absently that his two scaly enemies were still staring at him. Just as Crash was about to slip away while they were trapped in a state of shock, the two recovered. Baring their sharp teeth and extending their claws they slowly started forward.

"Whatever _sss_orcery the cry_sss_tle has granted you is incon_sss_equential. We will still tear you to pieces."

Crash shrugged. "I think that opinion is in the eye of the beholder."

The dragons looked confused for the second time.

"What?" Joe hissed harshly.

Crash pointed behind them, and when the two dragons saw what their enemy observed, their eyes were instantly filled with worry. Apparently the fountain had taken too much abuse from Moe's sword, because it was timbering to the floor quite quickly. Crash didn't notice if Moe and Joe escaped the falling fountain, since he was already in a dead sprint toward the door. He really didn't know how those swords could have broke, but he didn't have the strength to think about it now. Instead, he focused on running from yet another crumbling structure before it crushed him to death. It seemed to be a pretty popular occurrence lately.


	6. Chapter 5: The Pits

**Chapter Five – The Pits**

Coco squealed in delight when she finally cracked the code. It was a difficult one, but Coco was quite an experienced hacker already, so the job was only a little tricky. Now Coco was in Cortex's mainframe, and she would be able to access anything from that point. That is, until Cortex or one of his computer scientists discovered her intrusion and shut everything down. Coco would just have to move quickly. From what Coco could see already, Cortex was planning something huge. She decided she would figure out what that was. First, before she did anything else, she would need to contact her brother and offer him some obvious advice. Do not trust Cortex.

--

Crash tumbled through the portal and slammed hard on a knee to slow his tumble. After he dashed through the imploding halls for a few tiring minutes, he made it to the outside in no time at all. He would have been in a whack of trouble if the whirligig hadn't been waiting for him right as he exited. Perhaps it was coincidental, but Crash wasn't about to question it. Coincidences were good. Now back in the warp room, Crash rose to his feet and brushed off his pants. No sooner had Crash began to walk to the next portal, when the room dimmed and the hologram blinked on once again. Crash's shoulders slumped.

"Oyi, you've gotta be kidding me."

Cortex's face was set in a grimace, and the expression didn't make his ugly face any prettier.

"Listen up Crash, we are not without enemies. I have evidence that my old colleague, Dr. Nitrous Brio, has been interfering in our plans."

Crash raked his hands through his damp hair. "No kidding? Would have liked to have that information a little while ago, but whatever." Crash was the king of sarcasm.

Cortex, again, either didn't hear Crash's statement or just didn't care. "You must realize that Brio is to blame for our misunderstanding in the past. He forced me to go along with his plan for world domination, and he's at it again. One thing is certain; if he gets the crystals the world _will_ be in grave danger. Continue collecting the crystals Crash, and we will rescue the world from certain destruction."

The image faded away, and Crash had something fairly impolite ready on his lips. Yet he kept his mouth closed, and was about to evaluate where he had to go next when another hologram materialized. Crash expected to see Cortex again. The creep probably remembered some important errand he needed his newly and forcibly drafted minion to take care of. When Coco's face emerged Crash was all but speechless.

"What's going on here…?"

Coco's eyes darted back and forth, and finally settled on Crash.

"Crash! Thank goodness. Listen, I haven't much time…Cortex is planning something…pretty sure it's not good…" Crash furrowed his brow as he attempted to understand her. The static crackled her words so they were almost unintelligible. "…secret space station...I'm not sure, but…"

Abruptly, Coco's face was gone. Crash crossed his arms in concentration. Well, if Coco knew he was gone, then there was no doubt that Aku had been informed as well. Crash really couldn't see any other alternative than to keep trucking forward. Yet now this business with Brio was starting to get Crash a little nervous. After all, the little guy probably had a really powerful vendetta against his former cohort. Now that Crash was caught in the middle of this, he was most definitely the most likely to turn into a casualty. That idea didn't lift Crash's spirits. He gave a slight shrug, and yawned. He sure was getting tired of all this crazy running around. The third and final portal awaited, and Crash couldn't find any reason not to step into the whirling vortex.

_Okay dokey. Let's get it over with. _

--

Brio slumped down in his lab chair, knowing now that Komodo Joe and his brother were not going to report. He could see by his visual feed he had wired into the temple that the entire structure had imploded, and even if the Komodo brothers had survived, they wouldn't have operational communication. Brio couldn't afford searching for them, even if he planned to do so. Obviously, Crash Bandicoot had made the decision to remain in league with Cortex, and that made him just as much of an enemy. Truthfully, Brio was quite disappointed about that. The bandicoot could have been a competent ally, and although he wasn't very smart, he seemed to be unbelievably lucky. Brio leaned in on his machinery, and activated his communicator. He inhaled deeply, attempting to calm his racing heartbeat. He really didn't want to take drastic measures like this, but he didn't have a choice.

"Release Tiny Tiger. Instruct him to locate and destroy Crash Bandicoot."

--

The ride seemed to be getting more tolerable, and for that, Crash was glad. Yet it still wasn't enjoyable by any stretch. This time, Crash materialized into what looked to be a jungle. At seeing the fanning leaves and high trees, his first reaction was to jump for joy. _I'm home!_ Yet, after further contemplation Crash was quite definite that this was not the pleasant little island he had come to love. It wasn't an island at all, by the looks of it, but Crash could have no way of knowing as of yet. Crash decided he stood in dumb inertness long enough, and began what he hoped wouldn't be a long trek.

_If I have to climb through another cave again, I'm not going to be very happy._

Before Crash went any farther, there was something he needed to sort out. He pushed through the underbrush until he found a collection of water. Using the surface of the water as a mirror, Crash caught a glimpse of himself. He was already aware that he was a handsome devil, but that was not the reason that he gasped. His eyes, normally a bright kelly green, were glowing in a shimmering shade of magenta. It wasn't just his irises either; even the whites of his eyes were mingled within the sparkling hue, a shade softer than the dark pink of his pupils. Crash shook off his momentary loss of direction, figuring that glowing pink eyes were just all part of the package. The colour of his eyes was the least of his present problems.

_Alright, I just got to finish this stupid goose-chase and I'll be rid of this creepy pink glow. Well, better get a move on. _

As Crash walked, he noticed the sky was pretty overcast, which probably meant rain. If Crash hadn't been so freaking tired, he probably would've enjoyed a little sprinkle to wash the stink off him. Unfortunately, Crash wasn't likely to get a sprinkle. If it was a monsoon or nothing, Crash could safely say he preferred the latter. Crash picked up his pace, impatient to find the crystal and be done with the whole thing. Once he handed these crystals over, he would be free to go back home, and that was all he wanted. Trusting Cortex was not a good idea, granted, but Crash really had no other apparent way out. Crash wrinkled his nose when he spied a fork in the road. One path looked relatively pleasant, and the other, not so much. Thick and tangled jungle walls surrounded the not-so-great path, and the ground didn't look very stable, in more ways than one. Although Crash knew which path he wanted to take, something nagging at his head told him to choose the treacherous path. Was something in him sensing where the other crystal was? The feeling didn't go away, so Crash angled himself toward the dangerous trail. He grinned ruefully.

"Of course." Crash spoke sarcastically as he tromped through the thickening dirt and mud. "The crystal couldn't be nicely settled in a berry bush ready to be picked up and carried away, oh no. It has to be buried deep in some godforsaken hole in a tangled jungle where I can get eaten around every corner."

Crash felt an inescapable chill rake up his back, and he shivered. Despite the fact that it was daylight, the deeper Crash buried himself in the jungle, the darker it became. Suddenly, the claw-like leaves obscured the sky completely, creating a fake night. Crash reached ahead of him, knowing very well that it was just a matter of time before he walked off, fell off, ran into or was eaten by something. As Crash was debating which would come first, he felt his foot sink slightly and suction lock his shoe in place.

_Oh dear, did I forget stepping into? How'd I miss that?_ Crash groaned as he pulled at his foot. The venture succeeded only in sucking his foot farther into the muck. It seemed pretty obvious that this stuff he was stuck in was quick sand. Or mud in this case. Crash took as big a step as he could with his free foot, and once he secured his balance he began to yank. He didn't stop pulling at his trapped foot until he realized that this particular process was not working very well. Now both his feet were cemented in the ground, and the rest of him was following with dangerous velocity. The mud passed over Crash's knees, and then reached up to his waist. All the while, Crash flailed his arms around in an effort to grab onto something. Anything he grabbed wasn't strong enough to hold him, and he was too short to reach any of the branches above him.

"Curse my below-average height." Crash growled under his breath as another giant leaf snapped into his grip.

As usual, it took a while for Crash's brain to really kick into gear. As he cursed the leaves that weren't anchored strongly enough, he didn't realize these inefficient plants were really a blessing in disguise. He had created a green plant mat across the mud hole, and the comprehension just dawned on him.

"Wait a second…I got it!"

Unfortunately, the comprehension was one of a different sort. Crash brushed the thick leaves out of the way, preparing to be brilliant. He took a deep breath, and bided his energy. An instant later, Crash started spinning like a manic. He didn't stop to see if he was freeing himself, or screwing himself deeper into the muck, but he felt quite comfortable in his whirling tornado regardless. When Crash found empty air at his feet, he stopped twirling. Astonishingly, he had dug quite a neat trail through the mud, and although it was filling in quickly Crash had just enough time to leap out of the muck hole. Crash was feeling a little less than fantastic as he felt forty pounds heavier with the mud caked to his shoes and legs. It only took a simple tornado spin to fling off the largest of the chunks, but Crash was still annoyed at being covered in mud.

"Come on now, stop being a baby. You almost get swallowed up by the earth and all you have to show for it is a little dirt? That's pretty good I'd say."

Crash knew that he needed to get back home soon, or this talking to himself habit wouldn't reverse itself. Being a five-foot-tall anthropoid bandicoot was odd enough without the added abnormity of chatting to himself on a regular basis. As Crash continued down the dark jungle path, he found himself wondering what he was going to do when he got a hold of that last crystal. Would he turn it over to Cortex? Crash smiled subconsciously. If it were up to him he would withhold the crystals just to stick it to the bastard. Yet if Cortex really did turn over a new leaf, and if protecting the world really was his intention, Crash was unsure about what he needed to do. Despite all this shilly-shallying, Crash's mind was ultimately made up. He just had to get that last crystal.

Suddenly Crash felt his feet begin to slip. Crash's body followed directly after, and as he slid down a mudslide he grimaced. _Don't let it get you down. You already know that nothing stays up underneath you anyway. Roll with the punches. _The quick slip ended with Crash sitting in a pile of mud within a very deep pit. Crossing his arms, Crash sighed. He was not particularly upset, since he was completely covered in mud anyway, but he was trapped again. If Crash had been less optimistic, he may have just lay there in dejection. Yet Crash learned long ago that crap happened, on a regular basis, and the easiest way to get through it was to just get through it. Crash got to his feet and wandered over to the high pit wall.

"Now, the easiest way out of this hole would be just to climb. So here we go."

Crash stuck his fingers in the compressed sediment, and started his first attempt at scaling the wall. Unfortunately, although the mud was packed pretty tightly, Crash's attempt only rewarded him with handfuls of thick mud. The damn stuff was too slippery. Crash rested on one knee, chin on his fist as he pondered. If one of those multiple vines had accidentally slipped, he would be in business. Crash was still attempting to use his imaginary telekinetic ability to give him some assistance, when he heard an unwelcome noise. Crash's ears flattened against his head, and he slowly turned around to face the next challenge. From out of the muddy ground, creepy little heads appeared like zombies. Crash took a few steps backward, stopping as his shoulder blades thumped against the wall of the pit. They were little rodents; Crash could see that now. Well, maybe little wasn't the correct word to use. They were shorter than Crash, yes, but they could also devour him quite easily. Crash raised his hands in surrender as the rats crept closer, deranged looks on their pointed faces. _They must be as hungry as I am._ Crash placed his arms against the wall, becoming as flat as he possibly could.

"After all I've been through, if I meet my demise by being eaten by rodents I'll never live it down."

--

Coco wasn't sure if Crash got all of her message, since it was very difficult to connect to the hologram Cortex had created. Yet at least she knew that he was alright, at least for now. Now Coco needed to begin her next difficult challenge. Breaking into Cortex's main computer and taking a look at what he was planning. Since she was already admitted within the mainframe, it was only a matter of putting the pieces together. Coco scanned her screen, absorbing what information she could before moving on. Most of the junk Cortex had on his computer was completely outdated, and so Coco had a bit of trouble finding his most recent plans. That Cortex guy sure was diabolical. Finally, Coco accessed something that referred to power crystals. It looked as though this was his most recent project, so Coco remained in that section. Apparently, there were three power crystals that were scattered in places over the earth, and the master gem controlled these crystals. Going solely by the records, it looked as though Cortex already had a hold of this master crystal. Coco furrowed her brow, and continued to scan over the information. If Cortex already had this crystal, what would he need her brother for? Then Coco felt her gaze snap back to the reference of three crystals scattered across the earth. Well, it was obvious the lazy dork wasn't going to get his hands dirty by collecting these crystals himself, so Coco supposed that's what he needed Crash for. Coco clicked onto the next screen, thinking about this for a second.

_Now why would Crash agree to get the crystals for Cortex? Well, I guess it's probably because he just wants to get back home. But he's got to know better than to help a guy who tried to take over the earth once already. Unless… Maybe Cortex told Crash he had a good reason for wanting the crystals. I don't think Crash would believe him, but then again, I've been wrong about Crash's reliability before._

Coco decided before she read too much into anything, she had to find out what Cortex really needed those crystals for.


	7. Chapter 6: A Tiny Tussle

**Chapter Six- A Tiny Tussle**

The rodents stared at him with menacing red eyes, and as they came closer they began to twitter something Crash couldn't understand. Just as well too, because if he could understand them he would have been convinced that he'd gone crazy. Crash grinned wickedly as the rats prepared to leap in for the kill. He dug his hands into the dirt wall behind him, slowly clutching handfuls of mud.

_Come on fellas, just a little closer…_

The rats complied, and the first line of rodents reared back to strike. Crash pulled away from the wall and let fly the two handfuls of mud, hitting a few of the rodents squarely. They were quite surprised by this attack, and stood there in shock as Crash reloaded. As he let off two more rounds, he felt something wet tap him on the nose. He took the time to glance skyward, and was quite disappointed to see that there was one hole in the jungle canopy. And that hole was positioned right over the pit Crash was trapped in, and it was beginning to rain. Not in the mood to grumble, Crash leapt out of the way as the rats recovered from their stunned immobility. There were only so many places to stand in a pit infested with big rats, and those spaces were filling up fast with new combatants. Crash jumped as a rat leapt at him, claws outstretched. The attacking rat missed, and plowed headlong into the opposite side of the pit. Crash didn't have time to laugh at the rat's ineptitude, since another had taken advantage of Crash's lack of movement. Crash dodged at the last possible moment, missing the lethal blow aimed at his throat. Yet the rat still was able to claw through Crash's forearm. As Crash stumbled back to regroup, he felt a piercing pain on his shoulder. A rat had latched its jaws deep within Crash's skin, and wasn't about to let go anytime soon. Crash took his bottom lip in his teeth to bare the aching pain, but continued to move out of the rats' attack paths. He threw himself into the far pit wall, wincing as the rat on his shoulder clenched its jaw. Crash bared his teeth angrily.

"Get the hell…OFF!"

He spun around swiftly, knocking the rat off and watched it sail through the air. Yet as soon as that rat was gone, another took its place. This rat dug its sharp short claws into Crash's back, but this time Crash didn't give it the time to stay there. He summoned all his strength and began to spin, faster and faster. He felt himself collide with more than a couple rats, and let out a loud whoop as he sent them all tumbling through the air. Yet, it couldn't last. Crash felt his leg catch on something, and was roughly thrown out of his spin. He fought to catch himself, but succeeded only in shielding his head as he toppled. He landed rather uncomfortably in the corner of the pit, head bowed against his chest and one hand still propped under his head.

"Ouch." Was all he could manage.

Now the rats were angry, and Crash had a feeling they weren't going to play nice anymore. Crash spied the one who had latched onto his shoulder, knowing instantly by the blood that dripped off the rat's jaws. Crash exhaled deeply, and an exhausted smile spread across his face.

"Okay, you've got me. Now…" Crash's amethyst eyes began to glow brightly. "Give me your best shot."

The rats looked positively terrifying as they leapt forward like a hairy black wave with dozens of red eyes. Crash remained where he was, his eyes growing brighter by the second. Suddenly, the markings on Crash's forearms reappeared, and they too began to glimmer and shine. Shafts of pale pink light blinded Crash an instant later. He closed his eyes instinctively, confused but still prepared to be gnawed to death by a bunch of rodents. The light died down, and when Crash summoned the bravery to reopen his eyes, he dropped his jaw.

"Now that's something you don't see every day."

The rats had been frozen in mid leap, their evil expressions stoned on their unmoving faces. Crash scrambled to his feet, eyes wide with shock. There was something really weird going on here. Well, at least he was safe for the moment. Yet Crash could notice a slight shaking of the immobile rats, and knew instantly that this sporadic power was not going to keep them suspended for long. Crash needed to get out of this pit, pronto. He noticed also that the markings on his forearms were still flickering, but he didn't have the time to study them now. He tried climbing up the wall again, but that was just about as successful as the first time he tried. Crash stood there for a moment, wondering what he could do.

_I probably could pile these rats up, and use them as a ramp to get out of here. But that will turn pretty ugly when the buggers decide to wake up._

And they looked as though they were going to wake up very soon. Crash doubted he would get any response, but he tried any way.

"Hey! Anybody! I could use a little help down here!"

Crash was so surprised to see a thick vine tumble into the pit that he stumbled back and tripped over a stationary rat.

"Grab!" A gravely voice yelled from above.

Crash felt a little hesitant, but banished it quickly. At least he'd be out of the pit. Crash latched his hands around the vine and began to climb.

"You have?" The same voice bellowed.

Crash raised an eyebrow and stopped climbing for a moment. "Uh, yeah mate. I have."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Crash felt the vine snap upward like an elastic band, and there was nothing he could do but shriek and hold on. He spiraled through the air a couple times before landing hard on his backside. He was too rattled to even moan an "ow". Crash rubbed his head and shook off the airborne sensation.

"Whoa, thanks guy. I…" Crash looked up, and his slight smile disappeared. "…I…I…uh…"

The creature that stood before him was a massive evolved tiger, and his mouth was bent in an oddly frightening scowl.

"Tiny save you." The tiger blabbered, smile still refusing to disappear.

Crash was still gaping. Then he caught on to the name. Tiny? Crash couldn't see anything tiny about this guy. Unless…

Crash shook off his thoughts before he lost control. "Yeah, thanks for that. So, I guess since there's not really anything more to say, I'll just continue onward and forward then."

Crash stepped forward, and unsurprisingly the tiger cut him off.

"Tiny save you. Now," Tiny's golden eyes angled and his smile widened ferociously. "Tiny eat you."

Crash dodged the strong lunge and bounded out of Tiny's reach. Crash had secretly figured being rescued at such an opportune time was too good to be true, yet it still didn't make him feel any better.

"You saved me just so you could eat me? That seems pretty redundant, doesn't it?"

Tiny obviously wasn't in the mood for talking, and he leapt at Crash again, long claws outstretched. Crash hadn't noticed before, but Tiny was wearing a ruddy green loincloth. It looked quite disproportionate to the mass of his upper body, but Crash wasn't in the best position to make observations right now. Tiny jumped again, and Crash mirrored the action in the opposite direction.

"Stay still!" Tiny roared as he continued to chase Crash throughout the clearing.

Crash knew he wouldn't survive even one body-check from this hulk, so he decided to take this battle elsewhere. Crash began to sprint in the opposite direction.

"You've got to catch me first jerk-face. Didn't really think I'd sit still while you ate me did'ja?"

Tiny roared so loud Crash needed to fight the urge to cover his ears. Yet it was obvious by the pounding of the earth that Tiny was in close pursuit. Crash had no idea where he planned to go, and Tiny wasn't going to be lost easily. Crash sprinted over the slippery land, keeping an eye out of for pits and thick mud holes. Unexpectedly, Crash felt his leg buckle and he fell flat on his face.

_What the hell? _

With a look of inconvenienced irritation, Crash could see a punctured mark just under the hem of his jeans. Blood was pouring out of the wound despite the minute size of it, and just now was beginning to shoot numb muscle spasms up Crash's leg.

_Oh come on! Why now?_

Tiny was faster than he appeared, and Crash was distressed as he felt the tiger lift him up by the scruff of his neck. The tiger's face was absolutely demonic as he glared, and drool trickled out of the side of his massive mouth.

"Why you run from Tiny?"

Crash grunted as the tiger used a measure of his strength to bash him against a tree. Slightly dazed, Crash tried to shake it off.

"I…run…cause…I don't want to be eaten."

Although it seemed quite obvious to Crash, Tiny still didn't seem to get it. In fact, under all that rage it looked as though his feelings were hurt. This was strange, but Crash wasn't about to offer himself as a snack to make the sensitive boy feel better.

"Tiny eat you quickly." He assured.

"Trust me buddy, if I have it my way, I won't be eaten at all."

Crash was pretty sure that if he really tried, he could squeeze out of Tiny's grip. Yet as Crash attempted to twist, Tiny tightened his grip, and Crash gasped to secure what breath he had. Tiny did not look very happy, but the feeling was mutual. Tiny opened his massive jaws, and just as Crash smelled his foul breath he summoned the lungpower to speak.

"Hey hey, wait a second."

Surprisingly, Tiny stopped, and fixed Crash with a questioning stare. Crash knew he would need to think of something quickly. Regrettably, nothing came to him. So he wiggled his foot from his shoe and tossed it with his toe. When it stopped tumbling, Crash offered a hesitant smile.

"Doesn't the midday meal deserve a last request?"

Tiny looked confused. Yet the meaning seemed to get past his dim witted brain and he nodded.

"Okay. What?"

Crash repositioned so the claw around his neck was more or less tolerable. "It has always been my hope to be devoured with both my shoes on. If I could just get my other shoe, I won't be any more trouble to you."

Crash reworded his statement just so Tiny didn't get the wrong idea. He didn't enjoy being dishonest, even in the direst circumstances, but he supposed that this was just a loose lie. After all, he defiantly wasn't going to be any more trouble if his plan succeeded. Tiny seemed to be pondering, if such a thing was possible, Crash's request and finally came to a decision.

"Put on shoe. But if you trick Tiny…Tiny break every bone in your little body."

Crash swallowed hard as Tiny lowered him to the ground. He offered a hesitant grin as he reclaimed his shoe and pulled his foot into it. He started to lace, slowly at first but picked up the pace as Tiny's foot began to tap impatiently. Finally both of Crash's shoes were accounted for, and the bandicoot rose to his feet.

_Okay, moment of truth._

There were some very fast things in the world, a speeding bullet, flashes of light and Crash Bandicoot when he was just about to be eaten. He sprinted as fast as possible, and flinched when Tiny's enraged bellow shook the jungle. If Crash was caught again, he'd be in very, very big trouble.

--

Coco's jaw literally dropped as she read the words inscribed on her computer screen. There was a mention of the crystals' incredible power (sources of channeling energy or something), but nothing on why Cortex wanted them. Then Coco accessed it. Cortex's plans blinked across the screen so fast Coco could barely read them. He was planning to create an ultra energy ray to enslave all of earth's inhabitants, using the crystals as a power source. Coco felt her breathing become less consistent as she scanned through more of Cortex's insidious arrangements. She gritted her teeth. That bastard was going to destroy life on this planet, using her brother as a pawn in his horrible plan. She knew Cortex was up to no good all along. She needed to communicate this information with Crash before he gave the crystals to Cortex.

--

Crash dashed over the ground, begging his sore leg to hold up until he was out of this mess. He could hear the distant sound of running water, and without the benefit of coming up with another plan, Crash started toward it. He shouldered through the thick leaves and wound around trees in his path, and he hoped that all the underbrush was slowing Tiny down. Yet as Crash saw the tiger slam into tree trunks and knock them out of his way by the root, he felt discouraged. He finally reached the river of water, and could see that there were a few stone platforms popping out of the water. Crash burst through the last of the weeds and jumped onto the first stone. The water was rushing fast, and Crash noticed now that just a ways away was a cascading waterfall. He wasn't certain how far the waterfall stretched, but he wasn't really planning to fall in the water anyway, so he didn't worry about it. Tiny leapt from out of the trees, looking terrifying as he stretched his claws before him and bared his teeth savagely. Crash expression was sour as he jumped from out of the path of the descending tiger.

"Now Tiny KILL you!" The tiger roared in fury.

Crash fed off his panic as he leapt from stone to stone. He needed to think of something, fast. Tiny was gaining on him, and since the massive tiger could jump farther than Crash, he was cutting corners.

"No fair." Crash grumbled under his breath as he jumped.

Then, Crash saw it. The key to his survival. The next stone was cracked through the middle, and if Crash estimated right, it probably wouldn't hold up Tiny's large mass. Lightly as possible, Crash landed on the booby trap, and turned around to face the tiger.

"Whatcha waiting for? Are you going to let a little bandicoot beat you? Put some effort into it fella, I'm getting bored."

Tiny stared at him with a satisfying look of disbelief. Then he howled toward the sky and took a running leap. Crash remained exactly where he was. He knew that he only had one chance to loose this tiger, and if he messed it up, he was dead. He also knew that if Tiny didn't break through the rock, Crash would be just as dead if not more so. So he waited, rubbing his forefingers and thumbs together nervously. At the precise moment, Crash bounced off the rock and back flipped to the next. Tiny slammed into the rock and for one terrifying moment, nothing happened. Crash stood there dumbfounded as Tiny raised one large paw.

"Bye bye Bandicoot."

Then the crumbling of rock echoed in the air, and Tiny plunged into the water. Yet before he fell, he was able to swipe his claw one final time. Crash stepped back, feeling the sharp tips graze his chest. Then Tiny disappeared down the river and over the edge of the waterfall. Crash stood there, panting and gathering his scattered senses. He was starting to grow very tired of all these ambushes. Crash staggered to the shore, cleaned the blood from his wound, and continued down the road.

--

Crash was convinced that at the end of the trail, he would find the crystal. If he didn't, well, he would just have to set up camp here and hope that wamba fruit were not native only to his island. Yet he had a pretty good feeling he was getting pretty close. The creepy tattoos on his arms were beginning to fade, but they grew brighter as he got closer to his target. It made the whole thing easier when he had a built in compass, that was for sure. Crash didn't run into any more nasty surprises, thankfully, but he did find himself looking up a very high wall. The pink glow told him that this was the way to go, and from what Crash could see, there was no easier way up. Crash was already too tired, dirty and sore to complain, and so he focused on how he was going to scale the wall. As he passed his hands over it, he could feel that it was the same slippery mud he was unable to climb in the pit. Crash placed his hands on his hips.

"Well this is just turning out to be a fantastic day."

Then he felt a warm energy pass over his arms, and he looked down at them to see what was going on. The markings had reappeared, and were now creating some pink swirls around the entirety of his right arm. Crash could only stare wide-eyed, as something seemed to rise out of his open palm and materialized into a gigantic sword. Crash dropped his jaw as the sword continued to solidify, and once it was finished, thumped to the ground at his feet. Crash was far too stunned to make any remark, and felt the reaction again, but this time with his left hand. Now Crash was looking down at two swords that looked pretty familiar. These couldn't be the Komodo brothers' swords? Could they? Crash shrugged off his confusion and thought about how he could use these swords to his advantage. He ignored the fact that a sword may have come in handy in his skirmish with the rats or his battle with Tiny, since that mindset would only succeed in annoying him. Crash hefted one sword, and with surprisingly little oomph he plunged it into the mud wall. He took the next sword in one hand, and climbed onto the visible hilt of the suspended blade. Now a good four feet off the ground, Crash stuck the other sword a little above him. Using his natural agility, Crash held on to the topmost sword with his legs and pulled the bottom sword from the wall. Then he replaced this sword a little farther above the other. He was able to climb up the wall with relatively little difficulty, and for that he was glad. When he finished scaling the wall, and pulled himself over the side, the swords faded again and the swirling light passed into Crash's arms.

"Weird, but handy."

Crash dusted the hopeless amount of dirt off his pants, and took a look of what lay before him. The trees had fanned out, and now Crash could see the grey sky quite clearly. Rain pattered the ground before him, and Crash wandered out into it, feeling quite refreshed as the water dripped off the tops of his ears and the tip of his nose. He was also quite thankful that at the top of some ancient stairs, under an artistically crafted stone archway shielded a bright mauve crystal. Crash dragged his sorry limbs up the eroding stairs, and reached out toward the final piece that would allow him passage back home. Just as his fingers touched the crystal, it faded away and Crash could feel the whirling power fill him with new energy. He just stood there for a moment, feeling so tired and so…HUNGRY. The immense hunger that tore mercilessly at Crash's being was turning out to be more painful than the dozens of wounds he endured. He shrugged his shoulders forward, wanting no more than to devour a hundred wamba fruit and then fall unconscious to sleep his stresses away. The faint clicking sound of the whirligig that seemed quite adept at locating him made Crash turn. In a sleepwalking trance, Crash staggered down the steps and toward the vortex, dreaming of sun and sleep.


	8. Chapter 7: The Plot Unravels

**Chapter Seven – The Plot Unravels**

Cortex gazed at the computer monitor, and his mouth curled into an evil smile as Crash stepped into the teleportation devise. Cortex leaned back on his chair and uttered a malevolent chuckle.

"Like guiding a rat through a maze."

N. Gin was busy making some final adjustments on his machine, but he still offered a grunt of agreement. Cortex still wasn't sure if Gin was functioning properly enough to undertake the tasks demanded of him, but Cortex had no other assistants at the moment. In fact, N. Gin would have died if it weren't for him. The rocket that buried itself into his scull would have killed him if Cortex had not rearranged and replaced his other internal organs. Now, he was a cyborg, more machine than man. The only way Cortex could keep Gin's exceptionally brilliant mind functional was by leaving the rocket intact, and yet there were always measures that could be taken to remove the appendage, had Cortex desired it. N. Gin had no memory of his previous life, and Cortex planned for him to stay that way. Men without memories were far easier to control. Cortex turned toward his cohort.

"You have finished calibrating the laser I trust, N. Gin?"

"Yes Dr. Cortex, of course.'

Cortex nodded slowly. His plan was becoming a reality, and his worst enemy was going to ensure it all went well. How marvelous. It would a great revenge indeed when Crash Bandicoot realized he had single-handedly carried out Cortex's plan, handing over the freewill of every living creature to his enemy. Cortex rubbed his hands together in anticipation. It would be quite satisfying to enslave the bandicoot along with the rest of earth's inhabitants, but Cortex knew better than to be too greedy. After all, the bandicoot had an insane amount of luck when it came to thwarting his plans. Cortex heard a quiet beeping, and leaned over to glance at his computer. He typed a few keys, narrowing his eyes in attempt to understand why the beeping was taking place.

"N. Gin, the mainframe is secured correct?"

"Yes Doctor, not even a supercomputer can break out codes."

Cortex felt a hindering sense of misplacement, but he shook it off. If any of earth's security systems did pick up the signal, there was no way they would connect it to him before it was too late. Still, he decided he would need to keep an eye on it just in case.

"When that contraption is functional, I would hope you could put it to use."

N. Gin emerged from behind the machine. "What have you in mind, Doctor?"

Cortex steepled his fingers as a bloodcurdling smirk demonized his features.

"I had hoped you could convince that bandicoot to hand the crystals over."

"But Doctor, isn't he under the impression that you and he are allies? He will surely hand over the crystals without any trouble."

"Probably. That marsupial was never very bright. Yet there is no harm in ensuring his obedience. And once he hands the crystals over to you, I would like you to kill him."

N. Gin looked visibly baffled by this, and Cortex felt himself disappointed at this reaction. He had hoped that once revived, Gin would be devoid of emotion. Yet he was beginning to recover faster than anticipated. He may even remember that it was Cortex's direct involvement that caused Gin's experiment to fail. Perhaps he would remember still that Cortex left the rocket embedded in his head for the sole purpose of being able to destroy him on a whim. N. Gin was smart, which was why Cortex needed him, but if he began to realize that he could remove the rocket without killing himself, he would begin to suspect Cortex. Yet he didn't worry. When that time came, Cortex would destroy his subordinate and be rid of the hindrance. At present, however, he was an asset.

"Is something the matter N. Gin?"

Gin looked a little dazed, but he recovered. "No Doctor, I shall destroy the bandicoot as you command."

Cortex leaned back into the shadows, in a better mood already.

"Excellent."

--

Crash was thrown out of the whirligig just as roughly as the other times, but this time he didn't even bother keeping his footing. He crashed forward on his face, and lay there for a moment. Yet he didn't want to give Cortex any satisfaction, so he slowly rose to his knees and then up to his feet. He was almost out of this nightmare; he just needed to keep going. Crash wasn't surprised when Cortex's massive head appeared in the middle of the room, and kept his hands clasped behind him just for the sake of hiding the markings that hadn't seemed to go away yet.

"Fantastic work Crash! You are truly a dependable minion."

Crash felt a quick flare of temper as he deciphered Cortex's words. Minion? Who the hell did Cortex think he was? Crash snarled before he realized he was doing it, and couldn't cool the burning of anger in his chest.

"I'll never be your crony, you macho fathead. Don't make me loose my temper now, not after all we've been through."

Cortex began to laugh in maniacal excitement, and since the idiot still couldn't hear him, Crash decided he wouldn't waste any more of his breath.

"A portal will appear in the center of the chamber Crash, step into it and you will be transported to N. Gin's lab. Give him the crystals, and you will be sent home. But only then, do you understand?" Cortex wasn't expecting an answer, so Crash didn't offer one.

Cortex smirked. "Good luck."

The doctor's face looked very menacing, but Crash shook it off. As the hologram disappeared, a whirling beam of energy took its place. Crash scratched his head. Good luck? What did he mean by that? Crash wasn't in the mood to dissect every hidden meaning in a crackpot scientist's statements, so he decided to simply take the last step on his long journey home. Crash stepped not-so-keenly into the path of golden energy, and sighed as he began to dematerialize again. As he began to fade, he thought he saw something familiar.

"Aku?"

Aku Aku shot toward him, his eyes wide with worry.

"Crash! Stop!"

Yet Crash couldn't stop. Not right now anyway. He faded away, offering Aku a tentative thumbs-up.

"Don't worry about me gramps." He couldn't see anything but whirling light now, but be put in the last word anyway. "…See you at home…"

--

Coco slammed her fist on the keys.

"Dammit!"

She couldn't connect to the signal fast enough, and she wouldn't be able to communicate with her brother before he made a big mistake. She bit her lip hard as she tried to connect to a more direct signal, but it was no use. Crash had already boarded Cortex's ship. She had no idea if he would hand over the crystals or keep them, and either option would probably result in his death. Coco felt an ugly knot constrict in her stomach. She couldn't let that happen. She couldn't sit on the sidelines and do nothing. She wasn't prone to crying, but she felt one small tear escape her angry reserve and trickle down her cheek. This sucked! She was one second from chucking her laptop into a tree when Aku appeared behind her.

"Crash has been transported somewhere, but I could not trace the location."

Coco gave him a frustrated glare. "I know where he is Aku, mystical techniques aren't foolproof you know. He's in Cortex's space station."

Aku's face fell. "Then it is as worse as I feared. I have sensed a growing disturbance from the earth, and yet I cannot pinpoint the reason. Does Cortex's involvement have anything to do with this?"

"Cortex's plan is to enslave the world by channeling a powerful solar energy through special crystals. One zap from this ray, and we all turn into Cortex's mindless drones. He needed someone to collect these crystals, and I guess he just scrolled down the list until he found someone who would help him."

Aku looked flabbergasted. "Crash? Crash would never help Cortex."

"He would if he thought he was saving the world." Coco said quietly.

"So he believed he was doing the right thing, and he'll hand the crystals over to Cortex, to ensure the earth remains safe."

Coco clenched her fists. "But that sicko is just using him for his own evil ends. What a creep."

Aku looked quite frantic. "We need to do something."

"We can't do anything now. But maybe Crash knows already. Maybe he had his own plan to thwart Cortex for good."

Silence prevailed, and both Coco and Aku Aku knew that the odds of this statement being true were near to zero.

--

Crash shook his head to clear the whirling stars he seemed to be seeing a lot of lately. He had a bit of a headache, but nothing too major, and his multiple cuts had finally stopped bleeding. That was a plus, at least. Now, with his personal check completed, Crash took a look at where the vortex had spun him off to this time. He seemed to be in some kind of big iron chamber, which would have been odd enough in itself. What made it crazier was the fact that as Crash took a peek out the window, all he could see were stars. Crash scratched his head.

"Well look at that, would'ja, I'm in outer space. That's a first."

When Crash stood on the tips of his toes, he could see earth's swirling green and blue colours, and the planet would have struck him with admiration if he wasn't so completely unsettled. How the hell did he get in outer space? Crash didn't have time to ponder the answer, for which he was thankful, since a very big door in the floor began to vibrate open. Crash remained where he was, not comfortable enough to waltz up to a strange hole, especially while he was out in the cosmos like this. Who knew where that hole could lead? Yet Crash shouldn't have been worried about where the hole should lead, but what could come up through it. A very large and intimidating machine hovered from out of the hole, and Crash took a few steps back out of pure instinct. It hovered there for a second, snapping its iron jaws and flipping some kind of exhaust vent open and closed like gills. Crash squinted, and thought he could see some kind of weird creature moving around within the robot's head. Crash took a breath and stepped forward, offering a friendly wave.

"Hi there!" He called. "How's the weather up there?"

The machine turned so it was in Crash's full view, and the latter avoided gulping at the sheer size of it.

"Crash Bandicoot!" A mechanical voice scratched over the chamber. "I have been instructed by Doctor Cortex to collect the crystals from you. Do you have them?"

Crash blinked his eyes, and the ultraviolet glow reflected off the steel bulkhead. An instant later, Crash had whirled three beautiful crystals together before him. They shone brightly, and Crash could almost see the ruby flame flickering within each of them. As soon as they appeared, they were gone, and the marks coiled back up Crash's arms.

"Yeah, I got your crystals."

Crash noticed that one claw was clicking impatiently. He clenched and relaxed his fists.

"Hand over the crystals Crash Bandicoot."

Crash beamed and offered a smirk. "Or what?"

The robot voice was silent for a moment, probably a little thrown off that Crash's tone was so dismissive. Crash didn't care at this point. He'd do any thing to strike a nerve.

"If you do not offer the crystals voluntarily, they will be taken from you."

Crash bellowed a laugh. "Yeah, well go ahead and get it over with. Because, frankly, when I see a monstrous killer robot come to get the crystals that I worked hard to collect, I find myself a little suspicious. If Cortex was such a reformed guy, why would he send a robot to get the crystals from me? I'll tell you why. Because he figures that after he gets the crystals, there's no more need for his brainless little pawn. So you didn't come just for the crystals, did you? Big guy?" Crash took a step forward and felt his arms begin to grow warm, like feeling just the briefest brush of fire. "You came to kill me. So get on with it. I'm tired of all this waiting around."

The robot man sounded like he shrieked…or something along the lines of that. Crash wrinkled his nose. _What the heck?_

"I will obtain those crystals Bandicoot! One way or another!"

Crash barely had time to jump out of the way as a thin red laser materialized out of nowhere. The bright shaft exploded into the wall behind Crash, and as the he twirled in midair to land softly on the steel ground, another laser followed it. Crash ducked this time, flat on his stomach as the beam singed the air above him. Crash rolled before the robot had a chance to lower the laser, and scrambled to his feet as quickly as he was able. He attempted to focus the energy in his arms as best he could, but the little strings of light that danced out of his arms were rather useless.

_Shoot. These light balls are going to do squat against that robot. Oh why'd I have to provoke the idiot?_

_Because it was fun, that's why._

Crash could have groaned. It was bad enough that he was talking to himself, but now he was having conversations. That totally sucked. Well, Crash wasn't in the mood to mope about his insanity right now. He needed to focus on the task at hand. If his crystal light attacks didn't feel like working, Crash would just have to take the tactical approach. Crash dashed in a serpentine pattern over the ground, and relied on his speed and speed alone to ensure he wasn't fried. As a beam sliced through the air toward him, Crash preformed an eloquent baseball slide underneath to avoid losing a vital body part. Now close enough to the robot to cause some real damage, Crash used what strength he had to leap onto one of the flailing robotic arms. Thankfully, the jerk controlling the mechanical nuisance was not too bright. So as he attempted to shake Crash off with the one arm, the other shot a laser beam at him. Crash dropped from the arm at just the right instant, in time to see the inept beam cut through the arm he had just left and sever it at the elbow. Crash moved quickly to avoid being crushed by the falling apparatus, and then got back to his feet just as quickly. There was still one arm to go.

Crash didn't know how he was going to get rid of that arm, but he decided he had better find a safer place to ponder his next move. His legs were a blur as he sprinted toward the machine, and then he executed a somewhat unpracticed back layout to gain momentum. He landed astride the laser arm, holding on for dear life. Crash was beginning to doubt his good hiding place as the robot began to throw its arm around unmercifully. Crash clutched onto the arm with a look of forlorn fatigue.

_Well Crash, this is another fine mess you've gotten yourself into. _

Not in the mood to scold himself for his stupidity, Crash kept his hands latched on the joint where the gun connected to the metal framework. If he didn't get off this bucking heap of scrap soon, he was going to look worse than if the thing had stepped on him. Crash closed his eyes to stop the constant whirling of his head, and grudgingly he felt another headache coming on. Suddenly, his palms felt very hot. Crash opened his eyes, and was just able to make out through all the bouncing that some liquid lavender stains were enveloping the joint. Crash didn't let go despite his desire to, mostly because he knew that if let go he'd be nothing but an orange blot on the ceiling. Sparks danced off the odd marks left on the metal arm, and Crash was appalled to see that the marks actually began to cut _through the metal_!

"Gak!" The arm chipped away from the main body, and Crash leapt away before the thing could crush him.

He heard it clatter to the floor, and was probably just as surprised as the geek in the robot's head. Crash shook off his surprise and stood in a triumphant stance, easily pretending that supernatural demonstration was intentional.

"So, give up yet?" He called with a lilt of humor in his voice.

The controller of the robot didn't speak but he was obviously quite enraged. That made Crash happy. As it stood now, the robot was disarmed, in more ways than one. Yet for some reason the big robotic hulk didn't look finished yet. The openings Crash had mistaken for exhaust vents now flapped open, and Crash felt a jolt of uneasiness.

"You cannot possibly think those lasers are my only weapons. You were lucky bandicoot, but your luck has run out."

Crash nodded. "Maybe, but don't count on it."

The vents positioned on the robot's shoulders began to power up, and Crash had to admit that he had a pretty bad feeling about what was happening. All of a sudden, two massive rockets shot out of the openings and blasted toward Crash's stationary form. He had all of a millisecond to drop to the ground and cover his head as the rockets soared over him. The torpedoes exploded in the titanium wall behind him as Crash rose shakily to his feet. This was going to be a problem. The robot let loose two more rockets, and as Crash watched them shoot toward him he grit his teeth. No more mister nice guy. Crash summoned the entirety of his speed and zipped this way and that, avoiding every projectile the robot could dish out. With a gigantic leap, Crash wrapped his fingers around a metallic grate and began a very determined climb. He decided that the best way out of this predicament would be to discuss this misunderstanding with the brains of the operation. Since Cortex wasn't around, this guy was the next in line. The robot shook around, but Crash refused to let that deter him. He hoisted himself to the very top of the metallic monster, and found the lock that would open the cockpit. Crash pounded on it.

"Let me in!"

There was no doubt that the jerk wouldn't open the door for Crash, so the latter didn't rely on that. Instead, he concentrated on materializing one of the Komodo brother's swords, and couldn't withhold his fiendish grin as it appeared in his grasp. With a sharp exhale, Crash slammed the sword on the lock and congratulated himself as the little metal bolt snapped in two and fell to the ground. The sword faded back into Crash's arm. Crash shoved open the cockpit with his shoulder, and when he looked up he was staring into quite the baffled face of a human machine. Crash could resist the urge to flash an evil grin at the jerk who was trying to blow him up.

"Now that I have your attention, let's discuss this like gentlemen."

The cyborg man's face altered from that of bewilderment to fury. "Get off my machine you furry monstrosity!"

Crash was rather taken aback by the cyborg's loud exclamation. What right did he have to call Crash a monstrosity? He wasn't exactly the run-of-the-mill normality himself. Crash opened his mouth to debate further, but was cut off as the Cyborg produced a futuristic pistol and aimed. Crash's eyes widened, and he was able to dodge most of the attack. Yet the little flicker of electricity that brushed past him sent wild spasms of electrical current through his arm. Crash lost his grip on the machine, and was subconsciously aware that he was falling.

"All right! You asked for it!" Crash called over the whirring of machinery.

Crash let his wounded arm hang useless for awhile until he got the feeling back into it, and focused on twirling through the air to land on his feet. He didn't land softly, but the impact was not as jarring as it could have been. Crash hunched his shoulders to catch his breath, and then slowly looked up to the barrels of the robot's weapons.

"Prepare to die Crash Bandicoot!" The voice cackled insanely as the weapons hummed to life.

Crash was getting very, very, very tired of this stupid brouhaha. It was pointless. He was so tired of it that he decided he would let a little uncharacteristic behavior take control for awhile. Crash angled his eyes in angry resolve. He willed the crystals to gather their full strength, and as commanded Crash could feel an extravagant energy pulsing within him. He clenched his fists at his sides, and let the violet light engulf him completely as he bided his strength. Suddenly every tiny noise became as loud as a trumpet in Crash's ears. The robot aimed, and Crash could feel the cyborg's thumb on the trigger. Crash felt an exhilarated smirk cast some evil across his normally bright face.

"If I'm gonna die, bot-boy, then you're coming with me."

The robots released the missiles, but Crash was ready. As the rockets shot toward him, Crash thrust out both his hands and sent a whirling pink energy toward the projectiles. The light wrapped around the missiles, and held them stationary for a moment. Crash could have easily sent them crashing back into the robot, but he figured that doing so would blow not only the machine but him up as well. So Crash picked the second best alternative. He sent the rockets shooting full power into the wide window. The glass was no doubt pretty thick, but Crash was confident that it couldn't withstand the impact of two rockets. And indeed he was right. The missiles shattered the glass, and Crash could feel the immediate result of clearing a path to pure vacuum. He felt the air around him suck toward the hole he had created, and realized instantly that he may have not thought his attack through. Yet it did get rid of the problem at hand. The robot, unable to withstand the pull, was dragged out the window and plunged into the emptiness.

"That was abrupt." Crash had little else to say about the matter.

What he did know was that he needed to get out of there before he followed the unlucky cyborg into oblivion. Crash latched his arm on a supporting rail with all his might as he reevaluated his situation.

"Well, that was a dumb idea. What the hell do I do now!?"

All the pink energy that was so handy before shrunk back into Crash's arms, so now he was on his own. As the oxygen faded rapidly from his surrounding, Crash needed to think up a plan, and fast. He squinted through the rushing air, looking for anything that could get him out of this predicament. Then he noticed the open hole in the ground, the one the machine appeared out of. The large metal doors were closing now, obviously so the ship could keep what oxygen it had, and Crash realized that was his only way out. He positioned himself just where he wanted to be, and then tried to take a calming breath. That endeavor didn't work too well on account of there being not too much air, but Crash resolved not to let that stop him. It was going to be a long shot, that was for sure. He could easily bounce off the closing door and spin out uncontrollably into open space, or he could miss it completely. Crash grimaced.

_No time like the present Crash, get a move on._

Crash released the bars and felt a wave of odd exhilaration as he slid across the metal floor. Under the circumstances, Crash should have been scared out of his wits. Well, he wasn't just scared, he was terrified. Yet, despite his uneasiness at being hurled through a tornado of fading oxygen, he was still able to throw his head back and holler an energizing "Yahoo!"

Almost an instant too late, Crash rolled and latched his hands around the opening the floor. The door was closing in slow motion it seemed, and with one quick bound Crash had slipped in through the cracks. Without any wind to hold him back, Crash landed with a thump on his stomach just as the door locked shut over him. Crash lay there for a moment, tallying his body parts and making sure they were all present before rising again. He was in a laboratory now, and he could probably safely assume that whenever there was a lab around, Cortex wasn't too far away.


	9. Chapter 8: Pack Attack

**Chapter Eight – Pack Attack**

Cortex snarled a profanity as he caught a glimpse of the camera feed. Miraculously, the bandicoot was able to escape N. Gin's mechanical terror and was now somewhere inside his space station. Cortex was so sure Gin could annihilate the bandicoot, he hadn't even planned his next move. The only thing he needed to worry about now was killing Crash Bandicoot, by any means necessary. Cortex grinned wickedly. He knew just what to do.

--

Crash had to admit that this lab looked a relatively less dreary than Cortex's last one. The lab Crash had been created within was far more cluttered and creepy, yet this one looked quite organized and the equipment looked new. Well, it wasn't as though Cortex could have salvaged anything from his old lab after it lit up like a candle. Crash chuckled at the thought. Now who could have been responsible for that? As Crash took a couple steps forward, he noticed with awe that Cortex had his own panoramic view of the earth. Crash eased up the steps carefully and took a good look out the window at the remarkable view.

"You look mighty pretty sweetheart, but I think I prefer the view from below a bit better."

Crash stood there a moment longer, wondering what he was planning to do from this point, when he heard a loud popping noise. Crash spun on his heel. Popping noises were never good signs. One of the computers started wailing, and a chain reaction of sirens and flashing red lights followed. Crash swallowed nervously. What the heck was going on here? Crash rushed to one of the computers and took a look at the screen

EMERGENCY DEFENCE SEQUENCE ACTIVATED

Crash cocked an eyebrow. Now what did that mean? Well, obviously Cortex knew he was here or he wouldn't have sent his metallic lackey to take care of him. But what was this sequence? Crash didn't like the sound of it. Crash then heart another sound, like the suction of air. The screen blinked another jumble of words now.

RECYCLED OXYGEN RECERCULATION ABORTED

The meaning of this phrase hit Crash like a ton of bricks, that is, when he had offered a sufficient amount of time deciphering the complicated jargon. Cortex was sucking the air out of his lab! Crash supposed the old geezer wasn't on the mood to get his hands dirty, so he took the indirect approach of destroying his adversary. Crash took his bottom lip in his teeth. If he was going to get out of here alive, which was the desirable route, he needed to think up a plan quickly. Crash glanced rapidly around the abandoned laboratory, eyes searching for anything that could be of any use. The sirens blared louder, and Crash slammed his hands over his ears.

"Do you mind? Isn't it considerate enough that you get rid of all the air, now you insist on blasting my eardrums too? Have you no shame?"

Crash squinted through the glowing greenish light and furiously stumbled about, scattering clutter about with one hand while keeping the other latched on his ear. Then he saw something quite interesting, and his hand dropped from his ear as he grinned widely.

"Well what have we here?"

A jumble of equipment lay on a table, with scraps of wire and ruddy clothes partially obstructing it. Crash fanned the junk out of the way and laid his hands on the metal, a sly smirk on his face. A jetpack, eh? Now he was in business.

--

Coco tugged irately on the strands of her ponytail, clicking her teeth to calm her racing mind. There had to be _something_ she could do. Aku Aku had been unable to remain idle, and was on a desperate search to find something in the ancient ruins to help their situation. Coco had absolutely no faith in that method at all, and had since been racking her brain to conjure a helpful idea. She flopped down on her stomach after a while of baseless pacing, and rested her chin on her fists. This entire predicament was getting quite tiresome, and Coco had just about enough. She stared at her screen for what seemed like an eternity before furrowing her brow. There was something else there, something she missed. Coco swallowed hard, desperately trying not to raise her own hopes. She started typing franticly, eyes wide as the screen blinked onto different screens in rapid succession. Somehow, her connection was picking up another signal. She had been linked to Cortex's mainframe the entire time, and now she saw that someone else was trying to access it. There was a message as well, but it was encrypted, and needed to be cracked before she could read it. Coco bit her lip. Well, this wasn't a direct answer to her brother's problem, but at least while she was occupied it was harder for her fear to claw at her.

--

The jetpack was REALLY heavy, and the oxygen connections and doodads that hung from the metal were quite confusing. Yet it was amazing how fast a simple-minded guy whose air was running out could don a complicated piece of machinery. Extraordinary in fact, and Crash was quite proud of himself as the vacuum stole the last of the oxygen and he was settled quite comfortably with his artificial air. Yet with his oxygen tank, mask, goggles and twin propelling jets strapped to him, Crash was starting to feel quite sluggish. Fortunately, that feeling didn't last very long, on account of the gravity becoming utterly non-existent.

"Hey!" Crash grunted with surprise as his feet left the floor.

He floated there ridiculously for a moment, trying unsuccessfully to keep himself upright.

_Crap, I wonder if this thing comes with a manual…_

Finally Crash got the hang of the crazy machine, and was able to stay balanced by pointing the jets toward the floor. Now, he just needed to figure out how to activate the bugger. He saw a red button on the left of him that looked very promising, so he gave it a quick click. Two rods snapped out of the sides of the jetpack, and if Crash hadn't been fully strapped in and floating in zero-gravity he would have jumped. As it stood though, he took the rods in his hands and figured these things steered him. Crash grinned as best as he could around the breathing mask.

_Okay, I can do this easy. Green means go, let's do this._

Crash snapped his thumb over the green button, and was surprised as he shot upward and collided with the ceiling.

_Mental note: Green means up._

Crash shook off his rattled brain and tried again. This time he tried the other rod. There were two buttons here, one being red and the other a kind of pinky colour. Crash chose red. He zipped forward without warning and found himself spiraling through the halls out of control. He would have sworn if he had the breath to do so. He was able to eventually slow himself down, and with a little practice, Crash was excited to see that he was getting better.

_I'm what one would call, a fast learner._

Enwrapped in his current arrogance, Crash didn't see the live wire that was sparking before him like a spitting snake. At the very last moment Crash caught a glimpse of the curling wire and twisted. Astonishingly, Crash had narrowly made it through the smallest of openings. He hovered there for a moment.

_Let's keep our mind on the job at hand, shall we?_

Crash continued onward, making a mental note of anything he passed in case he needed to come back this way. He gave a stifled chuckle. That wasn't likely to occur but he learned it was better to be prepared. As long as it didn't take too much effort, of course. Crash zipped through dim halls and carefully conquered dangerous obstacles left that way from the quick extraction of oxygen. He wondered absently if he would need to find an escape pod or something. He needed to get back to the planet, obviously, and Cortex probably had a few other diabolical schemes up his frilled sleeve. Crash sighed. Suddenly, Crash felt a burning sensation in his wrists. He collided with a wall to stop himself, and glanced down at his forearms. The marks there were glowing brightly, and Crash could feel their thrumming like the trickling of water over dry skin. Crash started forward again, feeling the crystals' light guiding him. Crash snorted. The quicker he could get rid of these shimmering pieces of junk the better. Following the internal guide, Crash made it to just the place he wanted. The escape pods. Crash muttered a distorted "yes!" under his breath as he prepared to swing into one of the open pods. The stupid marks burned him again, and this time, it hurt! Crash pushed himself away from the pod and struck the back wall. When the instinct disintegrated, Crash felt a welling of irritation fill him.

_What the hell?_

He glared at the markings again, but they continued to glow faintly as if nothing had happened. Crash tried to enter the pod again and the same reaction occurred. Crash gritted his teeth.

_Damn you stupid scribbles! Why are you giving me such a hard time? _

Then a feeling seeped into him, one that gently tugged at his angry resolve. Something was drawing the crystals, and Crash, in his current position, didn't have a choice but to follow it. He glided in almost a trance as he progressed, and as he neared the source of the temptation he felt the crystals grow more eager. Crash halted only when a pair of heavy metal doors blocked his path. He shrugged.

_Well, that's that. Better get back to those pods…_

Yet the crystals wouldn't let up. Crash blinked subconsciously, and a magenta flash sparked through the lock. Crash gaped as the door slowly swung open. He started gliding with a perplexed look on his face.

_Well now, that's just silly._

The designs were getting brighter by the second, and Crash felt a strange kind of invigoration come over him as he neared some secret destination. Crash accelerated through the last hall and then passed into a closed chamber. Crash stopped dead, which was no easy task in a jetpack. Sitting in the center of the chamber, surrounded by intricate and elaborate machinery, a massive maroon crystal floated in absolute suspension. Crash felt drawn to it like a moth to a flame, and eased toward the huge jewel with mesmerized eyes.

_Wow, now that's pretty._

Crash recovered from his sense of dumb-struck awe just long enough to realize that he needed this crystal. It was more than three times the size of the trivial little shards Crash had gathered, and for some reason it held quite a bit of importance. Crash sneered. If he was going to get Cortex back for playing him for a sucker, he needed ALL the crystals. Crash leaned forward and extended his arms toward the glowing gem. Just as his fingertips grazed the shimmering surface, the mammoth crystal faded away. Crash felt it whirl around him and then enter him through the strange marks. Crash held his breath until the remainder of the swirling dust settled, and then relaxed. Frankly, he felt little difference. Crash rubbed his hands together, brushing away the tingling feeling, and felt a little disappointed. Yet an instant later Crash felt an immense power channel through his arms and strike at the apparatus used to support the big crystal. The thing began to spark and sizzle with vibrating electric volts, and Crash watched with baffled eyes as the entire mechanical structure imploded, and was left a smoking heap on the ground. Crash glanced down at his hands, and then pressed them into his pockets.

_ That was a little unnecessary…but kinda fun._

Crash smiled excitedly, but instantly reminded himself that he needed to be really careful. It seemed that this big crystal didn't want to be controlled by anyone, so Crash wasn't in the driver's seat anymore. Yet this manner of thinking brought on another reflection. If he wasn't going to offer the crystals to Cortex, then what was he going to do with these crazy gems? He needed to get rid of them, but how was he supposing to do that? Crash shrugged. Whatever, he would figure that out when he was out of this floating dumpster and back to the planet. Crash started accelerating madly toward the escape pod dock.

--

Coco finally traced the signal, and deciphered the code in no time at all. Not a big deal when one's IQ was substantial. Coco leaned in and read the message with a sour expression.

DR. CORTEX, I HAVE APPROACHED YOU WITH A PACT BEFORE, BUT YOU REFUSED TO TAKE MY OFFER SERIOUSLY. I AM IN A POSITION NOW TO DESTROY YOUR SPACE STATION, AND IF YOU REFUSE TO COMPLY I WILL BE FORCED TO TAKE DRASTIC MEASURES. I WILL BE WAITING ON YOUR REPLY.

The message was coming from a ship hovering in space, and when Coco hacked her way into the easily penetrable system she read that it belonged to someone named Brio. Coco scratched her head. When Aku had spoken of Crash's adventure in Cortex Castle, he mentioned that Brio had been Cortex's associate. Yet apparently Cortex had betrayed his partner, and now it was probable that Brio was on a run for vengeance. Coco tapped her chin. Did Brio really have the recourses to destroy a space station? His confidential status reports proved negative on that front, but Coco wondered if maybe he had a secret weapon or something. She didn't have time to find another route, so she decided to go along with this one.

_After all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend, right?_

It took Coco a few moments to connect to the signal sent from Brio's craft, and after she did she activated the communication voice link. She took a deep breath and waited.

--

Brio leaned back in his chair. The fierce tiger had failed; he had just gotten word of it. Brio shook his head. How could that be possible? How was Tiny unable to destroy one little bandicoot? Regardless, as it stood now, Brio had absolutely no leverage. He had threatened that he would destroy Cortex's space station, but he knew the doctor wouldn't believe it. Brio didn't possess the firepower to take on such a task, and without the crystals, he didn't even have a chance. Brio sighed and his shoulders slumped. Now, there was nothing more to do except wait. Wait for Cortex to succeed in his dastardly plan and wait to return to earth, where all the inhabitance would be under Cortex's influence. While wallowing in self-pity, Brio noticed absently that there was a blinking dot on the screen of his computer. It marked an incoming communication. Brio eagerly activated it, hoping it was Cortex but knowing the latter would never agree to his terms. Yet with him on the line, maybe he could find a way to strike another deal. Yet Cortex didn't appear. A small furry face with large ears and long blond hair appeared on his screen, her green eyes were large but angled in distain. Brio gaped. The bandicoot girl took advantage of his speechlessness.

"Are you Dr. Brio?"

Brio gave a short nod. "I-I-I am. Who a-a-are you?"

The little girl fixed him with a glare, and deliberately ignored his question. "Just for the record, I don't trust you one bit. I know that you were the one involved in rapidly evolving animals on these islands, so I guess I'm one of your many indirect creations. Anyway, I also know that you hate Cortex and so that means we have something in common. Cortex has got my brother and I need you to help me liberate him."

Brio was staggered. "Your brother?"

"I'm Crash's little sister dirt bag, and I don't take kindly to having someone I care about snatched away to satisfy some ugly scientists' own ends."

Brio scratched his head in wonder. So Crash had discovered he had a partially evolved sister, was that even possible? Brio had no time to dissect it at the moment. He conjured an acidic expression.

"Why should I h-h-help you?"

The girl offered a narrow look. "Because we both need something. You want Cortex defeated and I want my brother back. I can access destroy Cortex's computer mainframe, but there is no self-destruct sequence so I can't blow up the entire place. I need you to give Crash passage on your ship, and then you are free to destroy the space station using the power crystals."

Brio scoffed. "Interesting notion. Yet you f-f-forget, my dear. Your b-b-brother has probably already surrendered the c-c-crystals to Cortex."

The girl looked visibly stricken by the comment, and he could read her hesitation. Despite this lapse of reserve, her sternness returned immediately.

"Well, if he did we're all in irreversible trouble anyway. We have nothing to lose by trusting that Crash has kept the crystals from Cortex."

Brio considered this. He wanted Cortex destroyed more than anything, but he didn't care for the possibility that Cortex may already possess the crystals. Crash Bandicoot was not very bright, that was a certainty, so there may be quite a large chance that he did yield them. In spite of this chance, the bandicoot girl was right. If Cortex had the crystals, it was already too late. So, the girl would destroy Cortex's research, he would offer passage to Crash, and the latter would therefore give the crystals to him. Then Brio could use these power sources to blast Cortex out of the universe. He liked the sound of that.

"Do we have a deal, Dr. Brio?" The little girl spoke with authority.

Brio was instantly snapped from his trance, and returned his attention to the bandicoot girl.

"Crash won't t-t-trust me enough to come aboard my ship. How w-w-will I c-c-convince him?"

The girl tilted her head to the side slightly. "If it's the choice between boarding a ship with an old advisory and being blown to space dust, I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure he'd choose the former."

_Ah, sarcasm. _

Brio leaned forward on his desk. "I don't think I am w-w-willing to t-t-take the chance."

"I'll give him a message, alright? I don't see how you could be intimidated by a dumb dope like my brother, but nevertheless I will make sure he knows you will be there. How's that?"

Brio shook off the patronization and nodded. "That would be a-a-adequate."

The girl nodded curtly and abruptly closed the connection, leaving Brio to wonder if he had made the correct choice. After all, aligning himself with Cortex's worst enemy may not be the wisest idea. Brio activated the visual, and the dim grayness of the windows faded into the dark starry realm of space. Then Brio's gaze settled on a hideous blot amid the beauty, the ugly bulbous space station that hovered like a blemish on a painting. Brio gradually felt his mouth begin to turn up into a smile. He would just have to take his chances.


	10. Chapter 9: Out of the Frying Pan

**Chapter Nine – Out of the Frying Pan…**

Cortex clenched his teeth so hard he thought his skull would implode from the pressure. Yet there was nothing else he could to calm the raging white flame of rage that blossomed inside him. He hissed low under his breath as he caught a glimpse of Crash Bandicoot darting through his space station in an oxygen tank and jet pack. Cortex hadn't even given it a second thought when he left his spare technology lying about. He hadn't believed the bandicoot would figure out how to don the equipment before the oxygen had fully disappeared and suffocated him. Cortex was attired in similar gear, with a more powerful protection and a longer oxygen supply. Now he was barricaded in the bowels of his space fortress, and not willing to confront his indestructible adversary as of yet. He still had a few plans to rid himself of his failure, and he was sure his next plan would work. He floated toward a computer and typed out a quick sequence. Obviously, the bandicoot wanted to get back to the planet, therefore he need to escape this space station in an escape pod. Cortex had a maniacal look on his face. The trap was set, now all he needed to do was wait.

--

Crash rocketed toward the escape pod dock, and prepared to hoist himself into one. Yet he figured that once he got inside, he would have no idea how to make the thing work. He shrugged, and grasped the supporting rail above and began to swing himself inside. Instantly, the door on the escape pot shut. Crash bounced off the closed door and steadied himself at the wall. His jaw dropped as shafts of pink light danced off the control panels and jettisoned every solitary escape pod. The emergency doors snapped shut, and Crash was left there in the silence wearing a very perplexed face. Then finally he pushed off the side wall and pressed his face against the window. His wits came back to him in an instant and he slammed his fist on the metal.

"What....the…HELL!"

Crash was so angry he momentarily forgot his hunger. Why were these crystals so determined to see him dead? He was about to holler another curse, when suddenly each escape pod exploded in a blossom of flame. Crash's gaze was fixed on the window, and he felt a moment of shock as he absorbed what happened. As he watched the explosions fade away to nothingness, Crash leaned back slightly and reset his jaw.

"Oh."

--

After the escape pod fiasco, Crash hadn't the slightest idea of what he was planning to do. Cortex was around somewhere, and he was quite desperate to turn Crash into space dust. And that was a campaign Crash was not interested in pursuing. Maybe he could find some kind of space ship in the station somewhere, and miraculously find a way to start it, an even more miraculous way to get it out, and an impossibly miraculous way to actually fly it. Crash couldn't get the picture of him hurtling through the atmosphere only to explode on impact. He felt shivers. Suddenly, he had quite a fantastic idea. Maybe he could use Cortex's crazy technology to send a message down to his sister. She probably knew he was in some trouble, thanks to Aku, and she was always on that silly computer of hers. Crash studied one of the control panels with a furrowed brow. When he realized he had no idea what he was doing, Crash just started touching buttons rapidly in hopes he was making enough of a disturbance to get his sister's attention.

--

Coco was quite frustrated. She didn't have any way to contact her brother on that space station. She could connect to a communication device easily enough, but that space station was huge. It would be next to impossible to actually get a hold of Crash from her position. She just had to hope that when Brio kept his part of the bargain, Crash wasn't going to do anything stupid. Yet that was a long shot, and probably too much for Coco to hope for. As she considered what little options she had, she could see a connection begin to blink on her computer. It was coming from the space station, and with a confused look Coco hesitantly activated the line. Instantly a miniature version of Crash appeared on the screen, and Coco squealed

"Crash! Are you okay?"

Crash fixed her with a look that seemed to say "what do you think?", but he didn't answer. Coco noticed then that he was wearing some weird looking contraption.

"What are you wearing?"

Crash still didn't answer, and aggravatingly pointed to the mouthpiece that no doubt connected him to an oxygen supply. Coco understood why he wasn't talking now.

"Oh, you can't talk with that thing on huh?"

Crash tilted his head slightly and raised his eyebrows skeptically. Then he clapped his hands slowly in a sarcastic applause. Coco clenched her fists.

"Fine, you can just find your own way off that space station then, you stupid jerk."

Crash slumped his shoulders, and then offered her his ridiculous pouty-eyed look. Then he leaned back and spread his arm in a gesture that conveyed to "aw, come on". Coco grimaced.

"Alright, I made a deal to get you out of there. So you need to wait there until he gets there to pick you up."

Crash raised one eyebrow, but Coco decided just to leave him in that confusion.

"Trust me Crash. Okay?"

Crash gave her a salute, just as the picture began to fade away. As Coco watched the picture flicker, she swallowed hard.

"Crash…be careful."

--

Crash wondered how the connection faded, but he wasn't in the mood to look for another. His very considerate sister had already planned his escape for him, so there was really nothing left for him to do. He pushed himself away from the computer and floated for awhile. He wondered who Coco had conned to come get him, but whoever it was, Crash didn't really mind. As long as whoever it was got there soon. Crash didn't really have anywhere pressing to get to at present, so he settled on just drifting around. As he spun about the lab he noticed a sharp beeping noise in one ear.

_Now, what the hell's that?_

Crash stopped his playful twirling, and supported his lightweight self on a desk. Then he began to rapidly check every dial that dangled off the jetpack. Finally, he found the cause of the noise. When he took a good look at it, he felt his heart skip.

_Oh, that's not a good thing._

The dial on the air meter in his palm was twitching toward the zero mark, which meant very clearly that Crash was just about out of oxygen. Crash furrowed his brows and began to speed through the corridors, having absolutely no idea what he was planning to do. There was no air anywhere, and unless someone was planning to inject the oxygen back into the space station, Crash was in very big trouble.

--

When Cortex had seen an explosion through the corner of his eye, he felt a moment of true joy wash through him. Yet when a dozen more explosions followed, Cortex's hope was shattered. He rushed to the window and pressed his face to the glass. Sure enough, every escape pod on the starboard side of his station had been jettisoned. And as Cortex had intended, each had exploded just after launch. He deducted that the bandicoot couldn't possibly have set off all those escape pods, therefore he must still be alive. To confirm, Cortex found another visual on one of his many cameras, and cursed callously when he saw the bandicoot as he suspected. He smashed his fist on the console and ignored the sparks. Why was it so difficult for this marsupial to die?! Cortex clenched his jaw tightly, just as another fiendish plan leaked into his mind. He had enough of this farce. This time he was going to kill Crash Bandicoot, and watch him die with his own eyes.

--

Crash glanced down at the gauge in his hand, and although the dial was hovering just over zero now, he could still breathe. Yet he was pretty sure that wouldn't last very long. Crash sped around corners, his eyes glancing around rapidly looking for anything that could help him. Nothing came up. Crash snorted as he forced the jets to speed up.

_After all this, I'm going to end up suffocating myself from loss of oxygen? Come on, after all the enemies I've gotten away from? Darn it, I pretty much did the job for them._

Crash continued do search, but still to no avail.

_Well this sucks._

He was just about to call it quits and descend into a nice, leisurely death, when he caught a glimpse of something. A large screen had blinked into activation, and read the words: EMERGENCY OXYGEN Override Activated

Crash sped forward and blessed the stars surrounding him as he glided into a chamber, not even stopping to think that he could be cruising into a trap. However, at least he wouldn't die by suffocation. If he died by something else…well, that was a different matter entirely. The iron door clanged shut, and Crash instantly felt the orange hairs on the back of his neck rise. Ignoring the sensation for the time being, he rejoiced as precious air was filtered into the chamber, and he landed with a soft rock on his feet. He tore off the oxygen mask and jetpack, tossing them both aside. Now within the wonderful embrace of oxygen, Crash prepared to dance out his invigoration. Unfortunately, something decided to happen.

"So Crash Bandicoot, how are you holding up?"

The voice was creepy, but Crash knew who it belonged to. He sighed. His dance would have to wait.

"Just fine thank you, and yourself?" Crash's tone was pure acid, and he had a remarkably cold smile on his face. His mood was not likely to improve until he was out of that chamber and got some nourishment.

"You still have the crystals I see, and I notice as well that you also obtained the master crystal."

"Oh, is that what that was? It's heavy, so I thought I'd use it for a paperweight or something. Unless you have a better use for it…the bidding starts at a ride home, how's that for a deal?"

Crash heart a satisfying hiss from the other line. It was always fun to be the cause of rising Cortex's blood pressure.

"Crash, my intentions haven't changed. Preserving the world is still my purpose, but to do so I need those crystals. Why don't you hand them over?"

Crash grimaced, but the smile didn't disappear. "Listen fella, I'd be happy to hand them over if you supported your allegation with one smidge of truthfulness. Unfortunately though, I can't say you do. I must remark that you continue to dash down my self-esteem with your opinion of me. Obviously you find me to be pretty stupid." Crash chuckled pleasantly. "And maybe I am, but stupid or not, I'm sticking to my first instinct. Never trust a back-stabbing homo sapien with bad trust record."

Crash then heard what sounded like a gnarled curse, and knew instantly that Cortex was aware of every word he was saying. Good thing too, because Crash was tired of talking to himself. Suddenly, Crash's ears pinned back, and that was never a good sign. Crash took a look around the chamber to see what his primal instincts had caught on to, and saw what it was an instant later. Dozens of slots slid open around the perimeter of the room, and some large guns appeared and began humming to life. Crash would have taken a few steps back, if he hadn't known that the same cannons threatening from the front were also were situated behind him. Crash swallowed hard. Now this was going to be a tough situation. Slowly, he turned around, scoping the chamber for any way out, or at least some cover. He saw nothing, and as he moved, he saw with dismay that every gun was trained on him. Crash gritted his teeth.

_Crap_.

"Your death was inevitable Bandicoot, you had to have known it. You were a failed creation, and it only stands to reason that you must be executed."

"Whose reason is that?" Crash snarled under his breath as he twitched his fingers.

"So, without further delay, farewell Crash Bandicoot."

The guns started making some questionable noises, and Crash felt a shiver dance up his spine.

"You know, if you want the crystals, you're not helping your case by blowing them to smithereens."

There was silence for a moment.

"Of course I have already added this into my plan Bandicoot, the crystals will shatter, but only momentarily. Their forces will soon bring them back together and they will reconstruct themselves. I do not need you alive to ensure their delivery." Crash could imagine Cortex grinning wickedly, one of his trademarks. "I just need to dig through your remains to gather the pieces."

Crash winced.

_Ouch. That was unnecessary._

Crash stared at the guns in front of him, and realized that there was nowhere he could run now. He was covered at every angle, and once the firing began he didn't have one iota of a chance. He felt a blazing uneasiness build up within his chest, but surprisingly he was not close to the edge of panic. He simply felt…regretful. The cold white flashes of several attacks at once caused Crash to shield his eyes, and he waited patiently for the searing pain. Yet, none came. There was something inside him that seemed to be speaking, or trying to. As though it was attempting to gain his attention and tell him something very important, but he just didn't understand. The sensation was irritating, but once Crash realized the laser blasts were not shooting through him, he didn't mind so much. An iridescent scarlet light was dancing off the tips of his fur and singing the air. Crash's eyes felt as though they were burning, and as he focused on each narrow blast, he was baffled to see that each laser ricochet off the light red barrier. Where the crystals shielding him? Hmm, that would be convenient.

_**Cortex will pay for his treachery. No human should disturb the balance. Repercussions must be appointed.**_

Crash gulped. The voice in his head was very clear now, and so soothing it could have been delivered on a breath of wind. Crash shivered. He was possessed now, and he didn't think he liked it. His hands rose on their own, and his fingers spread apart as power gathered within his open palms. Crash grimaced as a scraping energy built up within his chest, and slowly spread down his arms.

_All right already, enough drama. If you're going to do something, do it._

An instant later, the power blasted from Crash's body like a title wave, and Crash was blinded by a searing white light.


	11. Chapter 10: Breaking Out

**Chapter Ten – Breaking Out**

Coco tapped into the mainframe, and took a deep breath as her finger hovered over the activation. She didn't know if Crash was alright, if Brio was successful or even if Cortex was aware of her presence in his technological network. By deactivating his systems, she could be putting more at risk then she knew. Yet at this point, all she had to go on was Brio breaking though Cortex's defense. She couldn't focus on anything else now. She held her breath, and deactivated Cortex's systems.

--

Maybe worse then the blinding light that caused a massive recoil in Crash's brain, was the ear-piercing wails that followed. Crash felt completely drained, and fell to his knees and slammed his hands over his ears.

"Damn loud noises and bright lights. Damn it all!"

Crash was not in a good mood, and when he was finally brave enough to open his eyes his mood did not improve. The guns had been neutralized, thankfully, and were lying in smoking heaps on the ground. The energizing magenta light was gone, but Crash could feel it recharging inside him. Something had happened to the lights, and now Crash was immersed in the dim blood-red glow of emergency back up electricity. Crash moaned. The heavy metal door was still shut tight, and he was trapped in a chamber with flashing red lights and the sirens were still blaring. Crash felt like doing nothing else but curling into a ball. Yet he decided he wasn't ready to let Cortex win, especially after such a supernaturally awesome spectacle. Crash slowly tried to get to his feet, but felt an immediate head rush and stumbled back onto his face. He was so damn TIRED! He couldn't summon the strength to move, let alone stand up and go for a jaunt. Crash growled as he attempted to pull himself across the floor, hoping no one was watching his pathetic attempt. Soon, he hadn't even the energy to do that, and he rested his forehead on the steel.

_This really stinks. _

Crash was not really ready to give it another try, not until he rested a bit anyway. Yet he told himself firmly that he was not going down easily, no matter how much of a pain in the ass surviving was. He'd do it, just to stick it to that damn Cortex. Crash subconsciously heard a crash of metal through the numbing blare of the sirens, and he half-heartedly lifted his head to see what was going on. The metal door was beginning to cave in from the middle, as though something very strong was forcing them open. It was opening faster by the second, and Crash had started to get quite excited. Yet when he saw the massive figure framed in the doorway, his hope crashed and burned.

"Oh no, not you again."

Tiny Tiger leapt into the chamber, and Crash's eyes watered as he forced himself to his feet. His muscles were screaming, but Crash still raised his useless fists before him.

"Okay buddy, give me your best shot."

Tiny cocked his head with a remarkably innocent expression. He stepped forward. Crash leaned back.

"Alright, you asked for it."

Crash threw his fist forward with an absurdly ridiculous lack of strength, and felt his knuckles crack as they collided with Tiny's chest of pure muscle. Crash bit his lip.

"Ouch." His voice was pitiful.

Tiny raised his hands.

"Tiny not here to eat you tiny orange man. Tiny here to save you."

Crash furrowed his brow, and offered a very weak smile.

"You're joking."

"Tiny save you now."

Without further explanation, Tiny lifted Crash with embarrassing ease and threw him over his shoulder. Crash found that he was still flabbergasted as he bounced along against Tiny's arm. He had his mouth half ajar as if to say something that could capture the moment, but surprisingly, nothing came to him. So Crash decided that he might as well enjoy the ride, and let the burly tiger take him wherever it was they were going.

--

Brio twiddled his thumbs nervously as he paced back and forth across the deck. He had positioned his ship just under the space station as he waited for the defense grid to be deactivated, and as soon as it had, he had attached his ship. It was curious that none of Cortex's scanners picked up the external movement, but Brio just suspected that the doctor was too involved in other matters to take any notice. That was lucky for Brio, and made his breach relatively easy. Brio had been hesitant to send Tiny after Crash, but frankly, he was the only minion Brio had left. Despite Tiny's raging temper, he was relatively easy going, and Brio was confident Tiny would forget all about his recent skirmish with Crash Bandicoot. Or at least, he hoped so. Brio continued to wander the bridge, feeling his nervousness tug at him. Yet soon enough he could hear a thumping sound, and he rushed toward where the ship connected to the station. Tiny dropped from the hole, landing with a grace contrary to his massive bulk. Slung over his shoulder as limp as a rag doll, Crash Bandicoot offered a tight grin.

"Hey doc, long time no see."

Brio stood there in silence for a moment before Tiny demanded his attention.

"You see. Tiny save orange rodent, as Doctor say."

Crash tilted his head. "I'm a marsupial…actually." Then the bandicoot turned his attention back to Brio. "So I suppose you're going to tell me what you're doing here. I seriously doubt you'd go out of your way to rescue me just to surrender to your good nature."

"Y-y-yes Crash, you are c-c-correct. I need the c-c-crystals to destroy Cortex's space station once and f-f-for all."

Crash nodded. "Hmm. Alright then, that sounds like as good an idea as any. Hey!" Crash gave a loud whistle, and directed his next statement to Tiny. "Mind putting me down big fella?"

Tiny complied, and soon Crash was lying flat on his face. Without bothering to lift his head, Crash offered a weak thumbs-up.

"Thanks mate."

Brio had been wondering why Crash became so tired, yet he was able to derive the reason on his own. Crash was pitted against Cortex, and the crystals inside him probably figured it was an ideal time to take revenge on their attempted captor. So if Crash was caught in the crossfire of the crystal's power, of course he would feel drained afterward. It stood to reason. Finally Crash rolled over and propped his head under folded arms.

"Okay pal. Are you ready?"

Brio nodded vigorously. "Tiny, ready the m-m-machine if you please."

Tiny looked quite delighted to be of use. "Tiny start up laser Doctor." And then he was off.

Crash had managed to get to his knees, and by the strained look in his eyes, it was difficult to do so. He took a deep breath, and he slanted his eyes as though attempting to concentrate. An instant later, the markings visible on his arms started to glow, and then seemed to detach themselves from Crash's skin. The delicate markings twirled father up Crash's arms and coiled around his body in misty encryptions. Crash had his lip in his teeth, and continued to focus. Soon enough, two crystals began to emerge on the ground before him, and one more followed. Crash had his eyes closed now, but forced the last gem to materialize with sheer determination. Brio gaped at the extraordinary procedure, and felt his eyes widen as magenta energy swirled around to create the final crystal. It was colossal, and as soon as the three slave crystals and one master hovered before him, Crash smiled faintly.

"All…yours…doc."

The crystals gently lowered to the ground, just as Crash's eyes closed and he collapsed to his side, unconscious.


	12. Chapter 11: Crimson Inferno

**Chapter Nine-****Crimson Inferno**

Crash moaned as he tossed and turned. He probably could have rested there all day long, yet the massive gnarl that churned his insides caused him to wake up. His stomach was suffering greatly, and it wanted Crash and everyone else near him to know it. Crash blew out an exasperated breath, and lifted his arm up. He studied it carefully, and then his mouth broke into a wide grin. No more marks. Crash let his arm fall to his side as he felt his strength begin to return. A minute later, he got to his knees, and then he was finally able to stand up. His legs were wobbly, but he took being able to stand on his own as a good sign. He gently began to stretch his tight muscles and yawned as he strode over to a window. He took in his reflection in the thick glass. His eyes were back to normal now; a bright if somewhat tired emerald green. Although his eyes were not as luminous as the crystal glow, they still suited him just fine. Crash yawned again and turned on his heel. He stopped dead as he looked up at Tiny's grinning jowl. Crash sighed.

_Right…I remember now._

"Doctor say he want to see you when you wake up from nap."

Crash took a deep inhale. "Oh of course. By all means. Where is the good doctor?"

Bad idea. Tiny latched his large hand around Crash's thin arm and pulled him along. Crash winced.

"Hey, hey. Don't go snapping any limbs, alright?"

Tiny did little to compensate for Crash's discomfort, but the latter didn't really mind. At least he was off that space station. Towed behind Tiny, Crash had a few moments to glance around at Brio's unfurnished ship. It was not nearly as spacious and technologically sound as Cortex's, but Crash had to admit that he was impressed at what Brio was able to do with limited means. Tiny burst into a small lab, pulling Crash in right behind him.

"Here he is doctor."

Brio turned around from his work. "Thank you T-t-tiny." Then Brio settled his gaze on Crash. "The l-l-laser is set Crash."

Crash took a quick look at the massive piece of machinery that filled most of the lab. The barrel of the gun was pointed toward Cortex's station, and the rumbling power of the crystals caused the weapons generator to glow eagerly. Crash positioned himself so he had a good view of the show.

"Now we just need a bowl of popcorn."

Brio walked up to Crash. "Would you c-c-care to do the honors Crash?"

Crash tilted his head toward the doctor. "Don't you have a vendetta or something? I don't want to interfere with your vengeance trip or whatever."

"The r-r-right belongs to you more than it d-d-does to me."

Crash thought about it. After all that happened, he supposed he did deserve to blow up Cortex and his station. Even so, Crash wasn't willing to destroy anyone's life, even if it was a slime-ball like Cortex. Crash grinned.

"Go for it doc."

Brio looked as though he almost smiled. Crash couldn't really tell. With a fading grin, Crash turned toward the window, hearing thrumming in his ears as the laser gathered power. An instant later, a bright shaft of magenta light blasted from the weapon, and headed straight for the twisted station in the distance. Crash shielded his eyes as a blinding flash engulfed the ship, and soon after he could hear and feel the affects of the explosion. The ground shook beneath him, and he planted his feet so he didn't topple over. When the sky crashing rumble began to fade, Crash turned back to the window. All that was left of Cortex's space station was a cornucopia of shimmering scarlet stars, fading quickly into wide flickers. Crash raked his hand through his red hair, and then turned toward Brio without looking at him.

"Well then, that's that. I'd like to go home now. Give me a lift?"

--

The explosion faded into the absolute vacuum of space, leaving no trace of the grand space station that once had been suspended there. It was gone, and with it all the technology, inventions and research that had been inside. The beam of crystal energy had shattered and settled back to the earth, finding dormancy in new concealments across the surface. After Nitrous Brio's ship headed for the planet, there was nothing but stillness and silence that remained. A few moments of quiet reflection passed, and then a miniature space ship floated from the wreckage and sped away.

--

"Crash!"

Crash stood there with a docile smile on his face as his little sister dashed toward him. He didn't have the strength to move out of the way at the last second, so he absorbed the strong hug she gave him.

"Hey Sis, miss me?"

Coco leapt off him, her relief spent as he glared at him with heated eyes.

"Don't ever do anything like that again, you idiot."

Crash grinned wickedly. "Oh, I don't know if I can promise that. I seem to get a hankering once and a while to rescue the earth from certain destruction. I also think I have an addiction to getting thrown around and beaten up, but I'll try my best to break the habit."

Coco punched him in the arm. After another moment of glaring, Coco finally succumbed to hugging him again.

"Thanks for coming home big Brother."

Crash felt more warmth seep into his smile. "Thanks for caring." A moment later, Crash began to chuckle softly. "I knew you missed me."

Coco's head snapped up and her mouth was ajar slightly. Crash teetered as she clubbed him again and then turned and stomped away.

"See if I ever help you again, you dumb jerk."

Crash sighed with a small smile as he watched Coco march back toward the house. Despite their constant bantering, Crash was quite fond of the little pain-in-the-butt. Crash yawned so wide he felt his jaw click in protest, but the yawn itself was remarkably fulfilling. Then Crash wandered over to a small tree and began to shake it furiously. Dozens of wamba fruit fell from the leaves and thumped to the ground. When Crash thought he had harvested enough, he settled amid the piles of fruit and leaned his back on the tree. Cool shade shielded him from the sun, and as Crash felt his eyelids grow heavy, he reached for a wamba fruit. Before devouring it, Crash simply adored it for a while.

"Hello beautiful."

It was going to be a fine day.


	13. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

Coco came bounding into the shady oasis with a box in her hands. She looked quite excited as she ran toward Aku and Crash. Crash didn't bother looking up, and remained in his lazy position under a tree.

"Hey Coco, where's the fire?"

Coco slowed to a stop, a wide grin on her face.

"I'm too excited to be upset that I'm related to a moron. It finally came!"

Aku hovered at Coco's shoulder. "What is it?"

"It is a vital piece of technology that I need to complete one of my inventions. I ordered it off the internet and the delivery plane just dropped it."

Aku studied the box. "It's awfully small."

Coco plopped down to the ground and began to open the package. "Not all important things have to be big Aku."

Coco ripped off the paper and tore through the box.

"Feast your eyes on this!"

Coco reached inside the box and pulled out a round object. Crash began to snicker madly and Aku titled his body to the side in confusion. Coco stared blankly down at the yo-yo in her hand.

"Is…that a piece of important machinery?"

Coco leapt to her feet in outrage.

"I don't believe this. I have been waiting weeks for this, and those idiots send me…a stupid toy?"

Crash began to laugh. "If they were trying to give you something that fit your age, they should have sent a lollypop."

Coco snarled in anger and bounced the yo-yo off a tree.

"They are going to get a piece of my mind, those incompetent morons."

As Coco marched away, Crash bordered his mouth with one hand. "Don't overexert yourself Sis, you should conserve what mind you have."

Aku shook his large head back and forth in exasperation.

"She should put that passion to better use."

Crash shrugged. "That's why I follow my life's calling. Eat, sleep and be merry. Then there's no waste of energy there."

Aku sighed and followed in the direction Coco had departed. Crash was still giggling quietly to himself as he got comfortable. Then he opened one eye. The red yo-yo was laying not two meters away. Crash considered the rewards of getting up as appose to remaining exactly where he was. He didn't think about it for long. Crash got to his feet and picked up the little toy. He hooked the loop around one finger and let the yo-yo shoot toward the ground. The yo-yo snapped back up into Crash's waiting palm. With rising amusement, Crash continued to yo-yo with a grin that grew wider by the second.

1


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